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Qlksatra in tlj^ (Srai^a ' 

THE BATTLE 
OF MONMOUTH 

AN ORATION 

COMPOSED TO BE DELIVERED AT FREEHOLD. 
NEW JERSEY, JUNE 28, 1878, THE ONE HUN- 
DRETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BATTLE 

BV 

HENRY ARMITT BROWN 



WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO TEACHERS, 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH, AND EXPLANATORY NOTES 

a!^' J. \pEMAREST, A.M. 
Superintendent of Public Schools, Hoboken, N. J. 



PHILADELPHIA : 

CHRISTOPHER SOWER COMPANY 

124 N. Eighteenth Street 






Copyright, 1913, by 
Christopher Sower Company 



©CI.A347085 



CONTENTS 



Page 

Prefatory Note to the Teacher 5 

Battle of Monmouth 11 

Valley Forge and Philadelphia 16 

Important Changes in the American Army 21 

The Evacuation of Philadelphia 26 

Washington's Pursuit Across Jersey 33 

General Charles Lee 38 

The Last Moment for a Battle Had Arrived 45 

Monmouth Court-House 46 

The Night Before the Battle 46 

Clinton Attempts to Steal Away 47 

Washington Orders Lee to Attack the Enemy 50 

The Battlefield of Monmouth 52 

The First Skirmish 55 

General Lee's Incompetency 59 

A Disorderly Retreat 63 

Washington and Lee 71 

The Battle of Monmouth 76 

The Heroine of Monmouth 83 

3 



4 CONTENTS 

Page 

A Drawn Bat tic 88 

Clinton Steals Away in the Darkness 90 

Consequences Resulting from the Battle 91 

Why the Battle of Monmouth was Famous 96 

Examples of Heroism 96 

Washington's Soldierly Qualities 98 

Opinions of the Battle 102 

Time and its Changes 105 

Biographical Sketch 107 

I. Henry Armitt Brown 107 

His Childhood and Early Life 108 

His College Life 109 

Settling Down to Work 109 

A Public Discovery 110 

As an Orator 112 

His IMethods 112 

His Style 112 

As a Man Among Men 113 

H. The Battle of Monmouth Monument 113 

in. The Occasion — The Monmouth Centennial 

Celebration 120 

Suggestive Questions 121 



PREFATORY NOTE TO THE TEACHER 



Before the reading of this oration is taken up for class work 
the teacher should make a careful study of that period of our 
history known as the ''Formation of the Nation," which includes 
the controversy with England, resistance leading to independ- 
ence, in order to give a correct interpretation of this great master- 
piece. While this oration will appeal to the ordinary reader, yet 
for a study of it, such as may be required for the class-room, 
some preliminary work is essential. This critical study should be 
of a twofold character: first, the historical foundations upon 
which the orator built his framework; second, references to ora- 
tions of others, similar in character, with which portions of this 
oration may be compared and contrasted. 

Outline for Class Reading 

The appreciation of a classic improves with each reading, and 
this oration should be read at least three times. 

First Reading 

The first step in the reading of any classic is to read it as a 
whole, for the purpose of permitting the student to get the thread 
of the discourse. This can best be done by a single rapid reading. 
In no sense should this reading be used as a formal reading lesson. 
We shall make an inevitable failure if we attempt to teach reading 
in connection with literary appreciation of a classic. The first 
lessons, then, should require merely an intelligent reading. 
It should be read aloud in a pleasing manner to get a good under- 

5 



6 PREFATORY NOTE TO THE TEACHER 

standing of the discourse. Do not stop to look up words or to 
refer to the notes. Each day's reading should be so planned that 
it will stop at some interesting place, in order to keep up sustained 
interest on the part of the class. When we have read and have 
grasped the oration as a whole, we are ready for the second read- 
ing. 

Second Reading 

In reading this oration a second time, we should aim to study 
the mechanical means by which the orator secured his effects. 
In this detailed study the teacher should do all the reading, 
planning each day's lesson so that it will stop at some logical 
place in the discourse. During the second reading the student 
should form clear conceptions of — 

(a) The Characters. — Are the descriptions of the characters 
vivid? Can you see them? Can you call up a clear mental 
picture of them? Contrast the Revolutionary army at Valley 
Forge — poverty and patriotism, rags and resolution, bold, de- 
termined men writing upon the snow and ice of winter as their 
parchment, in their own blood, their deeds of valor and renown — 
with the British army in Philadelphia, flushed with victory, fear- 
less of defeat, wearing the winter away with feasting and revelry. 
How and why came Washington and his army to Monmouth? 
Show that Valley Forge was the "school of discipline" for Mon- 
mouth. Emphasize the fact that, next to Washington, America 
is indebted to Baron Steuben for the success of her arms at Mon- 
mouth, General Washington was the central figure in this 
battle — show his noble character, his perfect self-control, and 
equanimity — how his presence stopped the retreat and his dispo- 
sition of the troops gained the victory. Trace step by step the 
previous actions of Charles Lee, his singular conduct at Mon- 
mouth, his disrespect to his Commander-in-Chief and to Congress, 
his conviction and sentence. 
^ Call the roll of the hero(>s of Monmouth: "There was General 
Greene, that splendid soldier whose heart was ever true to the 
holy cause, and of whom Lord Cornwallis said he never felt 



PREFATORY NOTE TO THE TEACHER 7 

safe when he was in camp near him; there was the brave 
Lord Stirling, whose EngUsh title could not chill the warm 
beatings of his heart for liberty; there was that stubborn 
fighter, "Mad" Anthony Wayne; there was the brave and ac- 
complished Baron Steuben; there was General Knox, directing 
a greater cannonading than any ever before heard in the Revolu- 
tionary struggle; there was the chivalrous Lafayette, filled with fer- 
vent zeal; there was the gallant Scott, ever eager to punish the foes 
of American liberty; there was the resolute Grayson of Virginia; 
the able Jackson of Massachusetts; there were the three youth- 
ful Majors of the New Jersey troops, Richard Howell, Joseph 
Bloomfield, and Aaron Ogden, who greatly distinguished them- 
selves in the fight and subsequently became Governors of the 
State of New Jersey; there was the patriotic General Maxwell of 
New Jersey; there was the gallant Colonel Ramsay of Maryland 
who fought hand to hand with the British troopers ; there was the 
intrepid Livingston of New York and Colonel Walter Stewart of 
Pennsylvania; and, towering above them all, conspicaous for 
his brilliant soldierly qualities, calm in danger, cool and firm, 
meeting every turn of fortune, was the immortal Washington, 
who proved to the world that the hungry Continentals, in their 
ragged uniforms, could give battle in the open field and re- 
pulse the trained British forces. It was to his genius that the 
unfortunate and bad beginning of that day was turned into a 
glorious victory." And on this occasion we should not overlook 
the brave Molly Pitcher, the heroine of Monmouth, whose name 
will go down in history to future ages. Emphasize the fact that 
there is another class of heroes, worthy of all honor and praise 
— not the men who bore commissions and wore epaulets — the 
private soldiers, the rank and file, the noble men who died un- 
. known to fame, who sleep in unmarked graves. 

(b) The Setting. — Where is the scene laid? At what time of the 
year? Is there enough description to give a clear idea of the 
situation? Select the best descriptive passages. Can you see 
the lines of the two armies converging at Monmouth — the three 
skirmishes of the American army, resulting in confusion and 



8 PREFATORY NOTE TO THE TEACHER 

retreat due to the vacillation of General Charles Lee — the 
arrival of Washington — the meeting of Wasliington and Lee 
— the reorganization of the army under Washington, result- 
ing in the fourth skirmish, which developed the battle of 
Monmouth. 

(c) The Structure of the Oration. — Every well-constructed ora- 
tion has an introduction. Is the introduction of this oration 
clearly marked? Where does it end? Does it properly intro- 
duce the subject? What is the purpose of an introduction? 
Does it arouse an interest in the subject? The body or framework 
of an oration is called the discourse or discussion. What is the 
central theme of the discussion? State it clearly in a sentence. 
Is there more than one theme? If so, are they closely related? 
Does the oration possess unity? Are there any digressions? 
Does Mr. Brown appeal to the intellect or to the emotional nature, 
or both? The conclusion of an oration is called the peroration. 
The purpose of the peroration is to sum up the main points of the 
discussion; to restate some points with emphasis; or to make 
a favorable impression at the conclusion. Where does the per- 
oration begin? Does it serve the purpose or purposes of a per- 
oration? Is the style different from the introduction or the 
discussion? 

(d) The Style. — Select words that are strong and terse; expres- 
sions that are highly polished or ornamental. Read the best 
passages aloud and note the rhythm of the sentences. Does it 
possess individuality? Is the work characterized by accuracy 
of statement? sincerity? sympathetic appreciation? keen analy- 
sis? Of the three qualities of style — clearness, force, and beauty 
— which is most marked here? Are the sentences clear, short, 
long, or of average length? Are the paragraphs short, medium, 
or long? Does he use words precisely? Which of the following 
words best describe his diction: clear, simple, polished, ornate, 
terse, idiomatic, obscure, colloquial, verbose? 

(e) Memory Gems. — The pupils should be encouraged to select 
choice passages for memorization and to state their reasons for 
their selection. 



PREFATORY NOTE TO THE TEACHER 9 

(f) Collateral Reading .—Selvci another oration and compare it 
with this one in the chief points of the outUne. Note particu- 
larly points in which there is a marked difference. To what is 
this difference due— the time, the subject, or to the men them- 
selves? The number of great orators whose orations survive as 
literature is very limited. Burke, Pitt, Sheridan, Fox, Calhoun, 
Clay, Webster, Everett, Lincoln, Sumner, Phillips, and Grady 
are among the most distinguished. 

(g) Composition TFor/c.— Brief compositions may be written 
upon selected topics. The following list of composition subjects 
may be profitably used in connection with the study of the 
oration: 

a. The Heroines of the Revolution. 

b. The Perfidy of Charles Lee. 

c. The Battlefields of New Jersey. 

d. The Military Services of Baron Steuben. 

e. Washington at Monmouth. 

f. Lord Stirling, the Patriot, vs. Charles Lee, the Traitor. 

g. Pursuit of Clinton by Washington. 
h. The Story of Molly Pitcher. 

i. The Evacuation of Philadelphia. 

j. The Military Services of General William Maxwell. 

k. Was the Retreat of Charles Lee Justifiable? 

Third Reading 

This reading should be free from all criticism, and should be 
given for the purpose of permitting the student to enjoy the 
revealed beauty of the oration. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

An Oration Composed to be Delivered on the Hun= 
dredth Anniversary of that Battle 

BY HENRY ARMITT BROWN 



It is your fortune, men of Monmouth, to dwell upon 
historic ground. Yonder by the sea are the hills on 
which Hendrik Hudson gazed before he beheld the great 
river which still bears his name. Around you are the 

Why is it the good fortune of the men of Monmouth to dwell 
upon historic ground? Name towns and villages that recall the 
days of Carteret and Berkeley. Why is this one of the most 
famous fields in the long struggle for liberty? Give instances 
to show that the men of Monmouth were a patriotic race. 

Monmouth: A county in the eastern part of New Jersey; 
bounded on the north by the Raritan and Sandy Hook bays; 
on the east by the Atlantic Ocean; is drained by the Neversink 
and Manasquan rivers. The battle referred to was fought on 
June 28, 1778, at Monmouth Court House. 

The hills: The Atlantic Highlands. 

Hendrik Hudson : An eminent English navigator. He made 
several unsuccessful attempts to find a northwest passage to 
India. In 1609, in the employ of the Dutch East India Company, 
he entered New York Bay and sailed up that noble river, which 
to-day bears his name. 

11 



12 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

towns and villages whose settlements recall the days 
of Carteret and Berkeley. The name of your pleasant 
country takes the imagination back to the gay court of 
Charles the Second and his favorite and ill-fated son 
-^and year after year you gather the ripened grain 
from one of the most famous fields in the long fight for 
Libert3^ Your sires were a patriotic race. When 
the struggle with Great Britain had begun and the 



Carteret and Berkeley: In 1664 the Duke of York gave the 
whole of the territory between the Delaware and Hudson rivers 
to his friends, Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. It was 
called New Jersey because Carteret had been governor of the 
island of Jersey in the English Channel. While Governor of 
Virginia Berkeley once said, ''I thank God there are no free 
schools nor printing-presses in Virginia." 

Charles II (King of England) was born May 29, 1630. When 
but twelve years old he was present with his father at the battle 
of Edgehill, and in 1646 escaped to France. In 1650 he landed 
in Scotland, was crowned at the Scone, and with 10,000 Scots 
marched into England, but was defeated and his army put to 
rout by Cromwell. For six years he wandered about a fugitive, 
with a price of ;^1000 set on his head, now hiding in an oak and 
now disguised as a serving man. On the fall of the Protectorate 
he was recalled to the throne. "The King shall enjoy his own 
again" was the refrain of an old Royalist song, and Charles tried 
to make the prediction come true. He had no sense of duty to 
his people, and spent enormous sums of the government money on 
his pleasures. He had not enjoyed life during his exile, and now, 
with his courtiers, indulged in all kinds of vice and depravity. 
His reign was called the worst in English history, yet he was al- 
ways popular and enjoyed the nickname of the "Merry Mon- 
arch." 



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MONMOUTH BATTLE MONUMENT, FREEHOLD, N. J. 



14 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

gallant town of Boston lay suffering and in chains, 
the men of Monmouth County sent on October 12, 
1774, twelve hundred bushels of rye and fifty barrels 
of rye meal to their suffering brethren, with a letter 
in which I find these words: ''We rely under God upon 
the firmness and resolution of your people, and earnestly 
hope they will never think of receding from the glorious 
ground they stand upon while the blood of Freedom 
runs in their veins." So wrote the Jerseymen of 
Monmouth in the beginning of the trouble, and 
when the war broke out they did not wait for their 
enemy to come, but armed themselves and went to 
meet him. 

Recount briefly the causes of the. struggle with Great Britain. 
What part did Boston take in these early struggles? What is 
meant by the expression ''lay suffering and in chains"? What is 
meant by the expression "while the blood of Freedom runs in their 
veins"? What was the beginning of the trouble with Great 
Britain? 

James Scott (Duke of Monmouth) was born in 1649, the 
natural son of Charles II. His mother was Lucy Walters. He 
married Anne Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch, said to have been the 
richest heiress in the kingdom, and assumed her name. His per- 
sonal advantages and agreeable manners made him very popular 
He was in Holland when Charles II died. With a party of amied 
exiles he invaded England and raised the standard of rebellion. 
He was completely defeated at Edgemoor and captured a few 
days later. Having been taken into the presence of the king 
he threw himself at his feet, and, with abject spirit begged 
for his life at any price, but in vain. He was beheaded in July, 
1685. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 15 

Sons of such sires, in full enjoyment of all they 
gained for you, you can celebrate with a light heart to- 
day, the 28th of June. The glory of that day belongs 
to all your countrymen alike, but the place that wit- 
nessed it belongs to you. The place — the time — this 
inspiring throng, would stir colder blood than his who 
speaks to you; and even if all else were calm within 
me, here and now I must still feel tingling within my 
veins the drops of blood which I inherit from one whose 
patriotic heart boiled within him at the hedgerow on 
the Parsonage farm an hundred years ago. And I 
must not forget that my duty is chiefly introductory. 
My task to-day is to describe the battle. It is hard to 
describe a fight, especially one so full of strange and 
contradictory stories, nor is it easy to cram into an 



Why celebrate the 2Sth of June "with a light heart"? Why 
does the glory of that day belong to all countrymen alike? 

The drops of blood which I inherit: The mild strain of 
Quaker ancestry was mingled in Henry Armitt Brown with Revo- 
lutionary blood. His great grandfather, Colonel Benjamin 
Hoppin of Providence, Rhode Island, passed through the Seven 
Years' War of Independence as a captain of the Rhode Island 
Continentals, and was present at Princeton, Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth, and other battles of the Revolution; while another mater- 
nal ancestor, Thomas Weld Philbrook of Rhode Island, served at 
Ticonderoga, and also suffered incredible hardships on board the 
"Jersey prison-ship." 

Hedgerow: A group of locusts known as the hedgerow. 

Parsonage farm: It is a mile and a half distant from the 
church; here the hottest fight of the battle occurred. 



16 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

hour's speech the deeds of a day so long and glorious. 
With me you shall fight that battle over again. Others 
shall follow me to charm you with their eloquence, but 
for the hour that I stand here to-day, the Battle of 
Monmouth shall be the orator. I pray yoi4, then, 
my countrymen, to listen, and to give me your attention 
and your patience. 

VALLEY FORGE AND PHILADELPHIA 

The British and American armies during the winter 
of 1777-78 presented the most extraordinary contrast 
in military history. The troops of Washington were 
encamped in huts at Valley Forge, without clothes, or 
shoes, or blankets, and some of the time without food 

Why is it hard to describe a fight? Why is the history of this 
battle "so full of strange and contradictory stories"? Recount 
some of the glorious deeds of Monmouth. In what sense was 
the Battle of Monmouth to be the orator? Why should this 
battle be commemorated? What is the purpose of this anniver- 
sary? What is the spirit of this hour? Name the introduction 
to this oration. Compare this introduction with the introduction 
to Webster's Bunker Hill Monument oration; Lincoln's Gettys- 
burg Oration; Brown's Oration at Valley Forge. 

Does this introduction prepare the way for the discussion? 
Does it serve to arouse an interest in the subject? Does it indi- 
cate the manner in which the subject is to be treated? What 
purpose or purposes does the introduction accomplish? On what 
subjects are orations usually delivered? An orator always has 
some definite aim — what is the aim in this oration? State in 
your own language the purpose of an introduction or exordium. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 17 

even of the simplest kind. The army of Howe lay 
snugly ensconced in Philadelphia, protected by strong 
entrenchments, thoroughly equipped, well fed, well 
clothed, and in direct communication with New York 
and England. At one time the hardships of the winter 
had reduced the Americans from eleven or twelve 
thousand to five thousand and twelve men. The 
British marched into Philadelphia with more than 



Contrast the British and American armies during the winter 
of 1777-78. 

"At no period of the war," writes Chief-Justice Marshall, 
"had the American army been reduced to a situation of greater 
peril than during the winter at Valley Forge. More than once 
they were absolutely without food. Even while their condition 
was less desperate in this respect, their stock of provisions was 
so scanty that there was seldom at any time in the stores a quan- 
tity sufficient for the use of the troops for a week. The returns 
on the first of February exhibit the astonishing number of three 
thousand nine hundred and eighty-nine men in camp unfit for 
duty for want of clothes. Of this number scarcely a man had a 
pair of shoes. Although the total of the army exceeded seventeen 
thousand men, the present effective rank and file amounted to 
only five thousand and twelve." 

"What matters it to Sir William Howe and his victorious army 
if rebels be starving and their ragged paper currency be almost 
worthless? Here is gold and plenty of good cheer. What if 
the earth be wrinkled with frost? The houses of Philadelphia 
are snug and warm. What if the rigorous winter had begun and 
snow be whitening the hills? Here are mirth and music and danc- 
ing, and wine and women and play, and the pageants of a riotous 
capital! And so with feasting and with revelry let the winter 
wear away!" — Henry Armitt Brown. 



18 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

nineteen thousand, and at no time had less than twelve 
ready for the field. ''Two marches on the fine Lan- 
caster road," said Lafayette, ''by establishing the 
English in the rear of" the American "right flank, 
would have rendered their position untenal)le, from 
which, however, they had no means of retiring. The 
unfortunate soldiers were in want of everything. . . . 
From want of money they could neither obtain pro- 
visions nor any means of transport." They "fre- 
quently remained whole daj^s Avithout" food. "The 
sight of their misery prevented new engagements — 
it was almost impossible to levy recruits." From 



Sir William Howe served under General Wolfe at Quebec in 
1759. In 1775 he succeeded General Gage as commander-in- 
chief of the British forces in America. He commanded the British 
troops at Bunker Hill; was victorious in the battles of Long 
Island and White Plains. He defeated Washington at Brandy- 
wine, and then entered Philadelphia. After repulsing the 
American attack at Gcrmantown, he went into winter-quarters at 
Philadelphia. He was removed from his command in 1778, 
and was superseded by Sir Henry Clinton. He was a well- 
educated and successful general, but was indolent or perhaps 
indifferent. 

Marquis De (Marie Jean Paul, Joseph Roche Yves Gil- 
bert Du Motier) Lafayette, the distinguished soldier and 
statesman, was born at Chavagnac, France, 1757. He died in 
Paris at the age of seventy-seven years. As a boy he was page 
to the queen. He was but nineteen years old when he embraced 
the cause of liberty in America. Against the command of the 
King of France he freighted a shij) at his own expense, ami landed 
in America in 1777 to offer his services as a simple volunteer. He 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 19 

December till the middle of March their situation con- 
tinued to be desperate, and at any time during that 
period resistance to a vigorous attack by Sir William 
Howe would have been impossible. But that which 
rendered their sufferings so severe, protected them. 



quickly won the favor of Congress and the lifelong friendship of 
Washington. He was made a major-general and showed con- 
siderable ability as a commander. He was wounded at Brandy- 
wine while rallying the retreating Americans. He was engaged 
in various battles during the Revolution, and it was largely 
through his efforts that the army of Rochambeau was sent to 
America in 1780. He assisted materially in cutting off the retreat 
of the British at Yorktown, and was present at the surrender of 
Cornwallis. For his services he was publicly thanlced by Wash- 
ington on the day after the surrender. He was one of the board 
of judges that tried Major Andre. He visited America in 1784, 
and was everywhere received with great affection and respect. 
He again visited the United States in 1824 as the guest of the 
nation. Congress voted him $200,000 and a township of land 
for his losses and expenses in the Revolution. 



at 



In what way did the severe winter protect the American army 
Valley Forge? Give reasons for Howe's delay. 

The situation of the camp was so eminently critical on the 
14th of February that General Varnum wrote to General Greene 
that "in all human probability the army must dissolve." On 
the 16th of the same month Washington wrote to Governor 
Clinton, "For some days there has been little less than a famine 
in camp. A part of the army has been a week without any kind 
of flesh, and the rest for three or four days. Naked and starved 
as they are, we cannot enough admire the incomparable patience 
and fidelity of the soldiery that they have not been ere this excited 
by their sufferings to general mutiny and desertion." 



20 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

The weather was extremely cold, the ice immensely 
thick, the highways blocked with snow. Philadelphia 
furnished attractive quarters — it would be as easy to 
disperse the rebels next week as to-morrow. They had 
been often beaten in the field, and could be at any time 
— their submission was simply a question of a few months 
— it would be best to wait till spring. So reasoned the 
English commander, and the opportunity shpped by 
forever. Little did he understand the value to the 
rebels of those winter days. Little did he know while 



Give reasons why Howe let the opportunity slip by forever. 

While the British army was feasting and rioting in Philadel- 
phia, how was the time improved by the Continental army at 
Valley Forge? 

Nathaniel Greene, a native of Rhode Island, was a farmer 
and blacksmith. He educated himself while working at the 
forge. He studied Euclid, Caesar's Commentaries, Marshal 
Turenne's works, Sharp's Military Guide, Blackstone's Com- 
mentaries, etc. He possessed excellent qualities, and gave much 
attention to the study of military matters, for which he was 
gifted with a special aptitude. He was commissioned brigadier- 
general in 1775. He fought at Trenton, Princeton, and saved 
the army from defeat at Brandywine by a rapid march and 
skilful management. He presided at the trial of Major Andre. 
He succeeded Gates in command of the Southern forces. His 
celebrated retreat from South Carolina across North Carolina 
into Virginia won for him a high rank in the estimation of military 
men. Congress presented him with two pieces of ordnance taken 
from the British as a public testimony of his skill in managing 
the Southern department. By his skill in military movements he 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 21 

his officers feasted and gambled and rioted in Phila- 
delphia, that yonder up the Schuylkill those ragged, 
half-starved rebels were drilling and practising and 
growing into an effective and veteran army. January 
and February went by while the British were amusing 
themselves and the Americans working hard; March 
and April came and went, and still there were feasting 
and frolic in Philadelphia, and fasting and labor at 
Valley Forge. 

IMPORTANT CHANGES IN THE AMERICAN ARMY 

But the change had come. Greene had been ap- 
pointed Quartermaster, Steuben Inspector, the in- 



proved himself one of the most brilliant generals of his time. He 
died in 1786 from the effects of a sunstroke. 

Baron Steuben, the disciplinarian of the American Revolu- 
tionary army, was born at Magdeberg. He had fought in the 
War of the Austrian Succession and also through the Seven Years' 
War. He became an aide-de-camp to Frederick the Great. He 
came to America to assist the patriots in their struggle for inde- 
pendence. Congress appointed him inspector-general, and his 
services in drilling the troops were invaluable. He was a fiery- 
tempered soldier, and, when his imperfect knowledge of EngUsh 
would not permit him to berate the troops that he was drilling 
to the extent he felt they deserved, he would turn to some officer 
and beg him to scold the "awkward rascals." He commanded 
the left wing at the battle of Monmouth and took part in the siege 
of Yorktown. He was a member of the board that decided the 
fate of Andre. At the close of the war he settled in New York 
ajid received a grant of land from Congress. He died in 1794. 



22 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

trigues of Mr. Conway and his friends been exposed 
and brought to naught, the last attempt at concihation 
without independence had been rejected by the Con- 
gress, and with the early days of May had arrived the 
news of the alliance of America and France. It was a 
rude awakening for the British army after its winter's 
debauch to find itself master solely of the ground it 
occupied, the King respected only where his army was 
— the rebels stronger and better disciplined than ever, 
and encouraged by the news from Europe that seemed 
to loyal ears so distressing. The campaign of 1777 
had accomplished nothing — the victories of Howe had 
been fruitless — the defeats of Burgoyne disastrous — the 
winter in the rebel capital fatal to the royal cause. 
Not one prediction of loyal prophets had come true. 
Defeat had neither disheartened nor destroyed the 
rebel army — the loss of the capital had transferred 
to a distant village instead of dispersing the Continental 



Thomas Conway came to the United States in 1777 and was 
made a brigadier-general. He was leader of the conspiracy 
against Washington, known as the "Conway Cabal," on account of 
which he was wounded in a duel with General John Cadwalader. 

Why a rude awakening for the British army? What Euro- 
pean news encouraged the American army? How did the news 
affect the British? Outline the campaign of 1777. Show how 
the victories of Howe were fruitless. Show how the defeats of 
Burgoyne were disastrous. In what way was the winter in the 
rebel capital fatal to the royal cause? Why call Philadelj^hia the 
"rebel capital"? 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 23 

Congress — the power of the RebelHon remained un- 
broken, its heart aUve, its hmbs more vigorous than 
ever. In a word, Philadelphia had proved a second 
Capua, and the saying of shrewd Franklin had come 



Continental Capital: In 1683 Philadelphia was chosen as 
the capital of the colony, and continued to be such for 117 years. 
During the earlier part of the Revolution the city was the capital 
of the colonies. The occupation of the city at this time neces- 
sitated the removal of the Continental Congress to Lancaster, 
and, subsequently, to York, Pennsylvania. In Philadelphia the 
preliminary Congress of 1774 met, the Continental Congress sat, 
the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the 
United States were adopted, and from 1790 to 1800 it was the 
capital of the nation. 

Capua: An ancient city of South Italy, fifteen miles north of 
Naples. After the battle of Cannae, b. c. 216, the popular party 
opened the gates to Hannibal, whose army rapidly degenerated 
here under the new corrupting surroundings. 

Benjamin Franklin: One of the greatest of American states- 
men, philosophers, and writers, was born in Boston in 1706, and 
was the son of a tallow chandler and soap boiler. He was ap- 
prenticed to his brother, who was a printer, but he ran away to 
Philadelphia, where he established a paper in 1729. His ability 
brought him wealth, while his talents as a writer and his scientific 
discoveries made him famous on both sides of the Atlantic. He 
was sent to London as agent for several of the colonies when the 
Revolution broke out, but he immediately returned to America. 
He was one of the committee of five to draft the Declaration of 
Independence. He went to France in 1776 as ambassador, and 
it was his skilful hand that negotiated the treaty with that 
country, without which the Revolution could hardly havc^ suc- 
ceeded. He assisted in making the treaty of peace with England 



24 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

true: ''Sir William Howe had not taken Philadelphia — 
Philadelphia had taken Sir William Howe." 

The announcement of the treat}^ between France and 
the Americans, followed by the newy of a declaration of 
war against Great Britain, was of sinister importance 
to the British in Philadelphia. Threatened by a hostile 
army, and surrounded as they were by an enemy's 
country', a French fleet at the mouth of the Delaware 
would put them in great peril. The time for conquest 
had gone by; it had become now a question of escape 



in 1782, and took part in preparing the Constitution of the 
United States in 1787. He died in Philadelphia in 1790, aged 
eighty-four years. It was said of him that "he wrested the 
thunder from the sky and the sceptre from tyrants." 

"Fronting the river, near the present navy-yard, stood 
Wharton's mansion-house, with broad lawns and stately trees 
around it. There, on Monday, the ISth of May, 1778, was given 
a great entertainment in honor of Sir William Howe on the eve 
of his departure from America. It was called the Mischianza, an 
Italian word signifying a medley. This entertainment was 
])robahly the most magnificent exhibition of extravagance and 
folly ever witnessed in America. It very properly drew forth the 
indignant comments of not only the Whigs in America, but of the 
true friends of government here and in England, as an appropriate 
finale to the sensualities of the British army during its winter 
encampment in Philadelphia. The loose discipline of the army 
during those six mont hs of idleness did more to weaken the power 
of the enemy than all the battles they had yet experienced here, 
and fully justified the remark of Franklin, that ' General Howe 
had not taken Philadelphia — Philadelphia had taken General 
Howe.' " 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 25 

and safety. The season was too far advanced for an 
attack on the camp at Valley Forge. The army of 
Washington had been largely increased, and his natural 
strong position strengthened since the winter ceased. 
The country swarmed with scouts and partisans and 
spies. The vigilance of the Americans was untiring: 
McLane and Harry Lee kept the neighborhood of the 
city in constant agitation— the banks of the Delaware 
might at any time intercept the shipping — the French 
fleet would perhaps soon arrive — to remain in Phila- 
delphia would increase the danger. What was to be 
done? An escape to New York across the Jerseys 
seemed the only chance, and the sooner that was 
attempted the better. 



Explain how the British were surrounded by an enemy's 
country. What French fleet was expected at the mouth of the 
Delaware? Why had the time for conquest gone by? Why a 
question of escape and safety? In what way was Washington 
better prepared to resist an attack by the British? 

Show the imtiring vigilance of the Americans. Explain why 
it was dangerous for the British to remain in Philadelphia. What 
was their only chance of escape? 

Allan McLane joined the army under Washington in 1776; 
discovered the weakness of Stony Point and assisted at its cap- 
ture; also discovered the weakness of Paulus Hook and took part 
in its capture. 

Henry Lee was born in Virginia in 1756, and was a graduate 
of Princeton College. He was a member of the distinguished Lee 
family of that state. He had enlisted in the Revolution before 



26 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

THE EVACUATION OF PHILADELPHIA 

On the 11th of May Howe announced to the army 
his departure for Europe and the appointment of Sir 
Henry CHnton to the command. On the 14th it was 
ordered that the heavy baggage should be made ready. 
On the 20th the ''several corps were directed to put 
on board their transports every kind of baggage they 
could possibly do without in the field," and five days 



he had attained his majority. He was a dashing officer, who, in 
the latter part of the war, was in command of "Lee's Legion," 
which fact, and his numerous brilhant exploits, caused him to be 
known as ''Light Horse Harry." He was rewarded by Congress 
with a gold medal for his daring capture of Paulus Hook (now 
Jersey City) in 1779. He effectively covered Greene's retreat in 
1781. He was governor of Virginia in 1792-95. He suppressed 
the Whiskey Insurrection in 1794. He was author of the oft- 
quoted expression, "First in war, first in peace, and first in the 
hearts of his countrymen," which was used hy John Marshall in 
his eulogy upon Washington. He died in 1818. 

Who became commander of the British forces in America? 
Name some faults of General Howe as a commander. Who was 
regarded as the most competent British general in this war? 

Sir Henry Clinton, who was born in 1738, was a major- 
general when he came to Boston in 1775 with Howe and Burgoyne. 
In 1778 he succeeded Sir William Howe as commander-in-chief 
of the British forces in this country. In May, 1778, he captured 
Charleston and the whole of Lincoln's army, and in the follow- 
ing month fought the battle of Monmouth. He planned with 
Benedict Arnold, the traitor, the surrender of West Point.; failed 
to relieve Cornwallis at Yorktown; returned to England in 1782; 
died in 1795. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 27 

later — ''to send on board their baggage-ships the 
women and children and the men actually unfit to 
march." The preparations for departure were rapidly 
and well made, and on the 17th of June, at four in the 
morning, Lieutenant-General Knyphausen and General 
Grant crossed the river with a large division and all the 
wagons and baggage. At daybreak on the 18th the 
remainder of the army followed them. The departure 
was hurried and almost noiseless. The troops marched 
down toward League Island and were ferried over to 
Gloucester Point. ''They cUd not go away," wrote an 
eye-witness, "they vanished." It must have seemed 



Baron Wilhelm Knyphausen came to America as second in 
command of the Hessians in 1776. In 1777 he was placed in com- 
mand of the German auxiliaries. He fought at Long Island, 
White Plains, Fort Washington, and Monmouth. During the 
absence of Sir Henry Clinton he was in command of New York 
City. 

General James Grant was born in Scotland in 1720; was 
governor of East Florida in 1758; fought in the battle of Long Is- 
land in 1776, and was made major-general in 1777. He was with 
Howe in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in 1777. He fought the 
Americans at Monmouth, and in November sailed in command of 
troops against the French in the West Indies. It is said he was 
such a notorious gourmand in later life that he required his cook 
to sleep in the same room with him. He died April 13, 1S06. 

League Island, an island in the Delaware River, opposite 
Philadelphia, Pa. 

Gloucester Point is on the Jersey side of the Delaware, 
three miles below Camden and Philadelphia. 



28 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

SO to some of them who came near being left behind. 
The Hon. Cosmo Gordon, on that memora])le morning, 
rose for an instant into the notice of posterity, as lie 
sprang out of bed, belated, and hurried to the wharf 
in search of a boat to take him into Jersey. Hardly 
had he found one and started for the other side when 
Allen McLane's light-horsemen came galloping into 
town. That night the British army encamped at 
Haddonfield. It consisted of about fourteen thousand 



Cosmo Gordon (1737-1813) was Colonel of the 3d Regiment 
Foot Guards; tried by court-martial in August and September, 
1782, for neglect of duty at Springfield, N. J., on 23d of June, 1780; 
killed Colonel Thomas, who was a witness against him at this trial, 
in a duel in 1783. "The Honorable Cosmo Gordon stayed all 
night at his quarters, and lay in bed so long the next morning 
that the family thought it but kind to awaken him and tell him 
that his friends, the rebels, were in town. It was with great 
difficulty he procured a boat to put him over the Delaware. 
Perhaps he and his man were the last that embarked." — Watson's 
Annals of Philadelphia. 

Haddonfield: A village in Camden County, seven miles 
southeast of Philadelphia. Here the Assembly of New Jersey 
held parts of three sessions in 1777. On September 20, 1777, 
an act was passed which substituted the word "State" for the 
word "Colony" in all public writs and documents. The Coun- 
cil of Safety of New Jersey was created by Act of March 15, 
1777. The Great Seal of the State was formally adopted in 
May, 1777. The "Indian King," an inn in Haddonfield, built 
in 1750, in which these interesting events occurred, is now 
owned by the State. Upon the main street still stand two but- 
tonwood lre(>s under which the British Army i)assed. 



30 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

men. A few of the Hessians, the sick, the camp-follow- 
ers, and the Tory refugees, of whom there were a 
number, had embarked on the ships in the river des- 
tined for New York. Notwithstanding the strict and 
repeated orders to the contrary, the camp-followers were 
numerous, and the train of baggage nearly twelve miles 
long. On the morning of the 19th Clinton moved with 
three brigades to Evesham, eight miles from Haddon- 
field, Leslie commanding the advance, and Knyphausen 
following with the Hessians and two brigades of Brit- 



Hessians: Early in 1776 the British Government made treaties 
with various German petty principaHties by which it obtained 
mercenaries for the war in America. Under this treaty the 
Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel sent 17,000; the Duke of Brunswick, 
6000; the Count of Hesse-Hanau, 2400; the Margrave of Anspach, 
2400; the Prince of Waldeck and the Prince of AnhaU-Zerbst, 
about 1000 each. In all, England paid the princes about 
$9,000,000. The Hessians, on the whole, fought well. Some of 
them settled in this country and Nova Scotia. About 17,000 
returned to Germany. 

Give instances to show that the State of New Jersey was 
thoroughly patriotic. In what way had the Jerseymen become 
proficient in partisan warfare? Write a short composition on the 
topic, "New Jersey as the War-path of the Revolution." 

Alexander Leslie came to Boston with General Howe in 
1775; was a brigadier-general when he came to America; in the 
battle of Long Island in 1776, where he commanded the light 
infantry; was also in the battles of Harlem Plains, White Plains, 
and Monmouth. He accomv)anied Sir Henry Clinton against 
Charleston in 1780; was in command of Charh^ston at the close of 
the hostilities; died in England, December 27, 1794. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 31 

ish. The country had by this time become alarmed. 
The mihtia had sprung to arms in all quarters of 
the State. Familiar as they had been with the pres- 
ence of the enemy from the beginning of the war, the 
Jerseymen had become proficient in partisan warfare. 
The State was thoroughly patriotic. It had suffered 
more perhaps than any other from the depredations of 
the enemy. Beginning in 1776, the armies had crossed 
and re-crossed from the Hudson to the Delaware, and 
at no period of the struggle was the soil of New Jersey 
destined to be free from the irruptions of the British. 
The wise and patriotic Livingston, who was then the 
governor, had forseen the danger of a new invasion, 
and prepared to meet it, and the tramp of Clinton's 
army was the signal at which the armed yeomen sprung 
as it were out of the very ground. Philemon Dickinson, 

In what way had Governor Livingston prepared for the new 
invasion of the British? 

Governor Livingston, an American jurist, was born in New 
York in 1741. Having removed to New Jersey, he was elected 
to the first Congress from that State. He became Governor of 
New Jersey in 177G, which office he filled for fourteen years. 
He was a member of the convention which framed the Consti- 
tution in 1787. 

Philemon Dickinson, a patriot of the American Revolution, 
was born in New Jersey about 1740. He took an active part in 
the struggle for independence, and at the battle of Monmouth 
displayed great gallantry in command of the New Jersey 
militia. He was delegate to the Continental Congress in 1782 
and 1783, and United States Senator from 1790 to 1793. 
He died in 1809. 



32 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

of Trenton, their commander, prepared to harass the 
enemy at every point, and detached bodies were ordered 
to break the bridges in their way and hang upon their 
flanks and rear. Hardly had the advance-guard left 
Haddonfield, on the 19th, before it was attacked by a 
body of militia, and a sharp skirmish followed. On the 
20th Clinton reached Mount Holly, on the 22d the 
Black Horse, seven miles farther on. At five in the 
morning of the 23d he moved to Crosswicks. A lively 
skirmish delayed him at the bridge across the creek; 
but the next day he arrived at Allentown. Up to this 
point the British commander had been uncertain 
whether to push to New York by the way of Brunswick 
or turn eastward and seek the protection of the fleet at 



Mount Holly is the county-seat for Burlington County. It 
is situated on the north branch of the Rancocas Creek, about 
19 miles from Trenton. 

The Black Horse (now Columbus), 7 miles north from Mount 
Holly and about 5 miles south from Bordentown. 

Crosswicks: A village of Burlington County, on Crosswicks 
Creek, 4 miles east of Bordentown. 

Allentown: A village located in Monmouth County, about 
12 miles E. S. E. of Trenton. 

Brunswick (New): A city, the county-seat of Middlesex 
County, N. J., on the right bank of the Raritan River, at the head 
of navigation. Sir Henry Clinton intended to march from Haddon- 
field directly to Brunswick and embark his trooi)s on the Raritan 
River. He moved slowly on by way of Mount Holly to Cross- 
wicks and Allentown. When at Allentown he perceived that 
Washington was almost on his front, and rather than risk a 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 33 

Sandy Hook. The information which he gained at 
Crosswicks decided him. The whole American army 
had crossed the Delaware and was advancing in his 
front. 

WASHINGTON'S PURSUIT ACROSS JERSEY 

Washington had lost no time. Convinced that the 
British would soon evacuate Philadelphia and try to 
cross the Jerseys, he had issued orders to prepare for 
the contingency nearly three weeks before. For the 
past fortnight he had everything in readiness. On the 
18th of June, at eleven a. m., the news reached him that 
the enemy had gone. At three o'clock Charles Lee, 
with Poor's, Huntington's, and Varnum's brigades, 

general action, with all his encumbrances, he took the road on 
the right leading to Monmouth County Court House and Sandy 
Hook, with the determination of embarking his troops at the 
latter place. 

What induced General Clinton to change the plan of his retreat 
across Jersey? Make an outline map, and on it trace the route 
of the retreat of the British army; the American army. 

Charles Lee: See page 38. 

Enoch Poor, of New Hampshire, accompanied Schuyler's 
expedition to Canada in 1776; led the attack at Saratoga; served 
under Lafayette at Momnouth, and led a brigade against the Six 
Nations in 1779; in 1780 was placed in commanfl of two brigades; 
was killed in a duel with a French officer near Hackensack, New 
Jersey, September 8, 17S0. 

Jedediah Huntington, a Harvard graduate, joined the Con- 
tinental army near Philadelphia in the fall of 1777". was on the 



34 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

crossed the Schuylkill in full march for Coryell's Ferry, 
and at five Wayne followed with three brigades of 
Pennsylvanians. The Jersey brigade of Maxwell had 
already been ordered to join General Dickinson and 
co-operate in his efforts to detain the enemy. On the 
19th Washington followed with the whole army. The 
heat was intolerable, the weather rainy, and the roads 
bad. It was not until the 21st that the army was safely 
over the river and encamped in Jersey. The British 
were approaching Crosswicks. The country was alive 

Court-martial that tried General Lee; was a member of the first 
board of foreign missions; died at New London, Connecticut, 
Septem.ber 25, 1813. 

James Varnum commanded a regiment at White Plains; led 
the troops at Red Bank; served under Lafayette; represented 
Rhode Island in the Continental Congress. 

Coryell's Ferry (now Lambertville) is a short distance above 
the place where Washington crossed the Delaware to the attack 
of the Hessians, eighteen months previously. 

Anthony Wayne was one of the most active and conspicuous 
generals. He was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, in 
1745. His bravery gained him the sobriquet of " Mad Anthon}^" 
but he was discreet and cautious, quick in action and i)rompt in 
execution. His most notable exploit was the storming of Stony 
Point on the Hudson. This formidable work he carried at mid- 
night by a bayonet charge, the soldiers' guns being empty. For 
his brilliant achievement at Stony Point Congress gave him a vote 
of thanks and a gold medal. In his eventful life he was a farmer 
and land surveyor. He served in the Pennsylvania legislature, 
and was a member of the convention that ratified the Constitu- 
tion of the United States. He died in 179G, aged fifty-one. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 35 

with rumors and excitement. The enemy were reported 
to be in force, with an immense baggage-train and a host 
of followers, who committed all sorts of depredations as 
they marched. Accounts of plundered farms and 
burned homesteads came thick and fast. Their slow 
advance led Washington to think that they wished a 
general action and sought to draw him into the low 
country to the south and east. Detaching Morgan with 
six hundred men to reinforce Maxwell and watch them 



William Maxwell was a native of Ireland. He joined the 
army at the commencement of the war. In 1776 he was appointd 
colonel, and raised a battalion of infantry in New Jersey. He was 
with General Schuyler at Lake Champlain, and in October, 1776, 
was appointed a brigadier in the Continental army. After the 
battle of Trenton he was engaged in harassing the enemy, and 
during the winter and spring of 1777 was stationed near the 
enemy's line at Elizabethtown. In the autumn of that year he 
was engaged in the battles at Brandywine and Germantown, and 
during the succeeding winter he was with the suffering army at 
Valley Forge. He was active in pursuit of Clinton across New 
Jersey, and sustained an important part in the battle of Mon- 
mouth. After that engagement he was left with Morgan to 
annoy the enemy's rear in their retreat toward Sandy Hook. In 
August, 1780, he resigned his commission and quitted the service. 
He was highly esteemed by Washington, who, in transmitting his 
resignation to Congress, said, " I believe him to be an honest man, 
a warm friend to his country, and firmly attached to its inter- 
ests." He died in November, 1798. 

Daniel Morgan was born in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, 
in 1736. At the age of seventeen he was a wagoner in Braddock's 
army, and next year he received five hundred lashes for knocking 
down a British lieutenant who had insulted him. In less than 



36 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

close at hand, he marched to Hopewell, where he re- 
mained until the 25th. Summoning a council of w^ar, 
he put the question whether a battle should be fought. 



a week after he had enrolled 96 men, the nucleus of his famous 
rifle corps, and marched them to Boston. He accompanied 
Arnold in his march to Quebec and was made a prisoner. As 
Colonel of a rifle regiment he bore a conspicuous part in the 
capture of Burgo3'ne. He joined the defeated remnant of Gates' 
army in North Carolina. He served under Greene; helped to 
suppress the Whiskey Insurrection; was member of Congress 
from 1795-99. He died July 6, 1802. 

Hopewell: A town within five miles of Trenton. 

A COUNCIL OF WAR was held on the 17th, the day before the 
Americans left Valley Forge, and among other questions proposed 
was, "If the enemy march through Jersey, will it be prudent to 
attack them on the way or more eligible to proceed to the North 
River in the most direct and convenient manner to secure the 
important communication between the Eastern and Southern 
states?" Nearly all the officers were opposed to an attack 
on account of the inequality of force, but some thought it de- 
pended on circumstances. Washington was anxious to attack 
the enemy, but was obliged to yield to the force of circumstances. 
Another council of war was held at Hopewell. General Lee was 
strongly opposed to any interference with the movements of the 
enemy, and, being next in command to Washington, his opinions 
had considerable weight with the other officers. Yet six general 
officers were in favor of continued annoyance, and four of these 
(Greene, Lafayette, Du Port ail, and Wayne) declared in favor of 
general action. Washington was at first embarrassed by these 
divided opinions, but, relying upon his own judgment, he asked 
no further advice, but proceeded to make arrangements for a 
battle. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 37 

Greene, Lafayette, Du Portail, and Wayne urged, as 
one of them has told us, ''that it would be disgraceful 
and humiliating to allow the enemy to cross the Jerseys 
in tranquiUity" — that his rear might be attacked with- 
out serious risk, and that he ought to be followed closely, 
and advantage taken of the first favorable opportunity 
to attack him. But the majority held other views. 
It was argued that much was to be lost by defeat and 
little gained by victory. That the French alliance in- 



What is meant by the expression to allow the enemy to cross 
the Jerseys "in tranquillity"? What American generals ''held 
other views"? What were their arguments? Which general 
influenced the council to vote against a battle? 

Louis Lebegue, Chevalier Du Portail, was born in France 
in 1736; came to America in the early part of the Revolutionary 
war, and was appointed brigadier-general in the Continental 
army in November, 1777, and major-general, November, 1781, 
He was directing engineer at the siege of Yorktown in 1781. 
Returning to France, he was named 7narechal-de-camp, and in 
November, 1790, was made minister of war. In December, 1791, 
he resigned; and, when engaged in military service in Lorraine, he 
received a warning of the designs of the Jacobins and sought 
safety in America. He died at sea in 1802, when returning to 
France. 

French alliance: The King of France concluded a treaty 
February 6, 1778, acknowledging the Independence of the 
United States, forming reciprocal relations, and agreeing that 
neither should treat with Great Britain without the consent of the 
other. This treaty was drafted by Benjamin Franklin. Congress 
ratified the treaty on the 2d of May. 



38 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

sured the final triumph of the cause, and it would only 
be a risk to attempt a battle with the British army, 
which several declared had never been so excellent or so 
well disciplined. This view prevailed chiefly because 
of the earnest eloquence and great reputation of him 
who urged it on the council. 

GENERAL CHARLES LEE 

Charles Lee, the second in command, was a native of 
Englahd, and about forty-seven years of age. An en- 
sign in the British army at twelve, he had risen to be 
lieutenant-colonel. He had served in the old French 
war, and in Portugal against the Spanish, and at one 



Charles Lee was born in England in 1731; served as an offi- 
cer at Bradclock's defeat; served through the French and Indian 
War. He came to America in 1773, and so impressed the author- 
ities that he was appointed second in rank of the major-generals. 
He accompanied Washington to Cambridge, and from that period 
until his capture in December, 1776, he was engaged in very active 
service, particularly in the South, At the time of his capture at 
Basking Ridge it is believed that Lee lagged behind on purpose 
that he might fall into the hands of the British, for a few years 
since Dr. George H. Moore, of New York City, brought documents 
to light which proved beyond question that Lee offered to betray 
the American cause to the Howes at the time he was a prisoner. 
The Plowes did not buy him, probably because Lee held himself 
at his own valuation. After his disgraceful conduct at Mon- 
mouth he was suspended for disobedience, misbehavior, and 
disrespect, and was dismissed from the army. He finally 
went to Philadelphia, where he died in 1782 in poverty and ob- 
scurity. General Lee was a brilliant man in many things, but 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 39 

time had been a major-general in the PoHsh service, 
Of unquestioned bravery, he had distinguished himself 
by several exploits, which his excessive vanity would 
not suffer to be forgotten. Taken at his own estimation 
rather than at his real value, as such a man is apt to be, 
he had won without a stroke of his sword the most 
exaggerated reputation among the Americans for mili- 
tary genius and experience. A soldier of fortune, he 
cared little at heart for the principles for which the 
colonies were contending, as the selfish terms on which 
he entered their employment showed, but he had 
rendered the cause essential service, and enjoyed 
a reputation second only to that of Washington. In- 
deed, there were many who, a little while before, would 



his life exhibited a most perfect specimen of antithesis of charac- 
ter. He was bad in morals and manners, profane in language, and 
neither feared nor loved God or man. He wrote his will a few days 
before his death, in which he bequeathed his soul to the Almighty 
and his body to the earth. 

Write a sketch on the character of Charles Lee; his military 
services. Why did Mr. Brown call him a ''soldier of fortune"? 
Produce facts to show "that he cared little at heart for the prin- 
ciples for which the colonies were contending. " Name the 
principles for which the colonies were contending. Name 
the selfish terms on which Charles Lee entered the American 
army. Give instances in which ho had rendered the cause essen- 
tial service. What was his military reputation? Who were the 
people who would have been glad to have seen the names of 
Washington and Lee reversed? When, where, and under what 
circumstances was Charles Lee captured by the British? What 
British officer was exchanged for Lee? 



40 BATTLE OF MONMOtJTH 

have been glad to have seen the names reversed, and 
some who still felt with an anonymous writer when at 
the moment that Washington's virtues were keeping the 
army together at Valley Forge, he cried for ''a Gates, a 
Lee, or a Conway." Accustomed to be revered as an 
authority, Lee spoke with earnestness and even elo- 
quence. He had lately returned from more than a 
year's captivity. He was acquainted with the Charac- 

Cried for "a Gates, a Lee, or a Conway": The Conway 
Cabal was an intrigue by Gates, Lee, Mifflin, and others of 
Washington's officers in 1777 for the promotion of brigadier- 
general Conway, contrary to Washington's judgment. Wash- 
ington was accused of incompetency and partiality, and finally 
Congress was prevailed upon to promote Conway to major-gen- 
eral and inspector-general. In 1778 Conway was wounded in a 
duel. He afterward apologized to Washington, confessing his 
wrong. 

An anonymous letter to Patrick Henry, dated Ju;ie 12th, 
from Yorktown, says, among other things, "We have only passed 
the Red Sea, a dreary wilderness is still before us, and unless a 
Moses or a Joshua is raised up in our behalf we must perish before 
we reach the Promised Land. . . . The Northern army has shown 
us what Americans are capable of doing with a general at their 
head. The spirit of the Southern army is no way inferior to the 
spirit of the Northern. A Gates, a I^ee, or a Conway would, in a 
few weeks, render them an inestimable body of men." 

Horatio Gates was born in England; educated to the mili- 
tary profession; was an officer under Braddock; in 1775 was ap- 
pointed adjutant-general in the Continental army; accompanied 
Washington to Cambridge in 1775; and in June, 1776, the chief 
commanfl of the Northern army was conferred upon him and he 
was promoted to major-general. In the sunnner of 1777 he was 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 41 

ter of Clinton. He knew the efficiency of the British 
army — he had had great experience in war. His 
courage was known, his character trusted, his fidelity 
unquestioned, his arguments ingenious, his language 
eloquent. His views prevailed, and it was decided only 
to harass the enemy. Charles Scott of Virginia was 



unjustly placed in command of the Northern army in place of 
General Schuyler, and the victory over Burgoyne at Saratoga by 
the army und'er his command gave him great eclat. The glory 
of that achievement was not due to him, but to the previous op- 
erations of Schuyler and the bravery and skill of Arnold and 
Morgan. In the winter of 1778 he was involved in attempts to 
wrest the supreme command from Washington. His position 
as President of the Board of War enabled him to throw obstacles 
in the way of the chief, nor were they withheld. From that period 
until appointed to the command of the Southern army his military 
operations were of little account. When Congress gave him com- 
mand of the Southern forces, General Charles Lee said to Gates, 
"Take care you do not exchange Northern lourels for Southern 
willows." He proved an utter failure in the South, and was 
superseded by General Greene. He died April 10, 1806, at the 
age of seventy-eight years. 

Charles Scott was a native of Cumberland County, Vir- 
ginia. He raised the first company of volunteers in that 
State south of the James River. So much was he appreciated 
that in 1777 the shire-town of Powhatan County was named in 
honor of him. Congress appointed him a brigadier on April 1, 
1777. He served with distinction during the war, and at its 
termination went to Kentucky. He was with St. Clair at his 
defeat in 1791; in 1794 he commanded a portion of Wayne's 
army at Fallen Timber; was governor of Kentucky from 1808 to 
1812. He died October 22, 1820, aged seventy-four years. 



42 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

sent forward to join Dickinson, and the army marched 
to Kingston. But after the council had dissolved 
Hamilton, Lafayette, and Greene urged more vigorous 
measures; some of the others changed their minds — 
the chief himself inclined to run the risk, and it was 
decided to seek battle. Accordingly, on the 25th, three 
thousand men were ordered to join Scott and approach 



Kingston: A village of Somerset County, N. J., on the Mill- 
stone River, 14 miles northeast of Trenton. 

Alexander Hamilton was one of the most efficient statesmen 
and founders of the Republic. As a leader of the Federalist 
party, and with a firm conviction in a strong government, he made 
use of his opportunity, as Secretary of the Treasury, to place the 
finances of the young nation on a firm basis. To him, more than 
to any other, is due the stability of the government, its honorable 
dealings with its creditors, and the business-like methods of 
conducting its finances. In 1774, while the Revolutionary fever 
was at its height, he made a speech in behalf of the colonists, 
which was marvelous for a lad of seventeen. He followed this 
up by a vigorous war of pamphlets. When hostilities began he 
organized a cavalry company, and so distinguished himself at 
White Plains that Washington made him an aide-de-camp on his 
staff. After the surrender at Yorktown he studied law, and rose 
to eminence at the New York bar. He was a member of the 
Federal Convention in 1787, and his great work lay in his efforts 
to persuade the American people to adopt the Federal Constitu- 
tion. As First Secretary of the Navy he held Congress firmly to 
the duty of paying every dollar of the national debt at its face 
value. He also prevailed upon Congress to assume the debts in- 
curred by the States in carrying on the war, and thus established 
the credit of the nation. He was mortally wounded in a duel 
with Aaron Burr, then Vice-president, and died July 12, 1804. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 43 

the enemy. The command of this body naturally be- 
longed to Lee. But disgusted at the altered plan, that 
officer declined to undertake it, and it was given to 
Lafayette. Hardly had the latter marched, however, 
when Lee changed his mind. The detachment was a 
separate command — he would be criticised if he allowed 
a junior to assume it — he besought Washington to let 
him have it after all. Disturbed by this and anxious 
not to wound Lafayette, the Commander-in Chief 
settled the difficulty by giving Lee a thousand men, 
with orders to overtake the former, when his seniority 
would give him command of the whole. 

This was on the 26th of June. On the morning be- 
fore, the British march at five o'clock had revealed what 



"This force properly fell under the command of General Lee. 
As he was totally opposed to the movement, it placed him in an 
unpleasant situation. This embarrassment was mentioned to 
Washington by Lafayette, who offered to take command of that 
division. Washington agreed to give it to Lafayette if General 
Lee would consent to the agreement. That officer readily con- 
sented and Lafayette was placed in command. Lee afterward 
changed his mind and applied to Washington to be reinstated. 
He could not, with justice or propriety, recall the orders given to 
Lafayette, and the commander-in-chief endeavored to preserve 
harmony by giving Lee the command of two brigades, with orders 
to join the advanced detachment, when, of course, his rank would 
entitle him to the command of the whole. He ordered Lee to give 
Lafayette notice of his approach and to offer him all the assistance 
in his power for prosecuting any enterprise he might have already 
undertaken. Washington wrote also to Lafayette, explaining 
the dilemma and counting upon his cheerful acquiescence." 



44 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

Sir Henry Clinton had decided to do. Finding Wash- 
ington approaching, he turned eastward and made for 
Sandy Hook. Sending the baggage forward under 
Knyphausen, he followed slowly with the' main part of 
his army. On the 27th he encamped at Monmouth 
Court-House. Meantime the Americans had not been 
idle. All the way from Crosswicks, Dickinson and 
Morgan had hung upon the British flanks. The main 
American army had been detained at Cranberry by 
rain, and the advance retarded by want of provisions 
(Wayne's detachment obliged to halt at mid-day on 
the 26th because it was ''almost starving"), but on the 



Sir Henry Clinton intended to march from Haddonfiekl 
directly to Brunswick and embark his troops on the Raritan 
River. He moved on slowly, by the way of Mount Holly, to 
Crosswicks and Allentown. There being a single road, his long 
train of baggage-wagons and horses, together with his troops, 
made a line nearly 12 miles long. He was obliged to build bridges 
and causeways over the streams and marshes, and his progress 
was consequently very tardy. When at Allentown, perceiving 
Washington almost in front, Clinton changed his course rather 
tiian risk a general action. Turning to the right, he took the 
road leading to Monmouth Court-House and Sandy Hook, with 
the determination of embarking his troops at the latter place. 
The American army had now reached Kingston on the Millstone 
River. 

The army under Washington crossed the Delaware River at 
Coryell's Ferry (Lambertville) and passed -through Hopewell, 
Princeton, Kingston, Cranberry, and Englishtown, and met the 
enemy near Freehold. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 45 

morning of the 27th Lafayette and Lee effected a 
junction between Cranberry and Englishtown. 

THE LAST MOMENT FOR A BATTLE HAD ARRIVED 

The two armies were now less than five miles apart. 
It was evident to the commanders of both that the last 
moment for battle had arrived. A few miles beyond 
Monmouth the British would reach the high ground of 
Middletown, when it would be impossible to cut them 
off and dangerous to follow. If a blow was to be struck 
now or never was the time. The orders of Washington 
were explicit. On the afternoon of the 27th he sent for 
Lee and the brigadiers of his command, told them he 
wished the enemy to be attacked next morning, and 
desired General Lee to concert with his subordinates 



Cranberry: A village of Middlesex County, about 15 miles 
E. N. E. of Trenton. 

Englishtown: A village of Monmouth County, N. J., 5 miles 
northwest of Freehold. 

Middletown: A village in Middlesex Township, Monmouth 
County, N. J., 25 miles southwest of New York City. 

Lee was requested by Washington to hold a conference with 
his general officers as to a plan of battle. He promised to do so, 
and fixed a time and place for' the conference, but he neglected 
to appear at the time appointed, and led the troops the next day 
to the field of action without any plan and without even knowing 
many of the brigade and regimental officers assigned to him. 
His orders from Washington on that morning were to put his 
column in motion at daylight, and attack the enemy as soon as he 
moved from his position. 



46 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

some plan of action. Five o'clock was named as the 
time for a conference, Vjut when the officers called, Lee 
dismissed them with the remark that it was not possible 
to make a plan l^eforehand. The advance lay for the 
night at Englishtown, the main body of the Americans 
three miles farther to the westward. The British were 
encamped along the road, their right resting on the 
forks of the roads to Middletown and Shrewsbury, the 
baggage in charge of the Hessians placed near the Court- 
House, the left extending toward Allentown aljout 
three miles. 

MONMOUTH COURT-HOUSE 

The little village of Monmouth Court-House had 
grown up at the intersection of three roads — that on 
which the British were marching, another which led 
northward toward Amboy, and a third which came from 
Englishtov.Ti and Cranberry. A few houses clustered 
about the wooden Court-House, which stood on the 
spot where we are gathered to-day. Long settled as the 
country had been, much of it remained uncleared. 
The undulating plain through which the road ran north- 
eastwardly to Middletown was open, ])ut the way to 
Cranberry soon after leaving the Court-House plunged 
into the woods, which lined it for several miles. 

THE NIGHT BEFORE THE BATTLE 

It was the night of Saturday, the 27th of June. 
Imagine, if you can, the scene: the little village about 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 47 

the Court-House, full of soldiers in scarlet — the baggage 
wagons drawn together in the open ground to the south- 
ward — the crackling of the fires as the troops get supper 
— the neighing of many horses picketed along the road 
— here an officer riding by, there a guard marching to 
its post — the hum of voices — the innumerable noises 
of the camp growing fainter as the evening draws on — 
and at last the quiet of the summer night, broken only 
by the steady footfalls of the sentinels and the barking 
of a dog at some distant farm-house or the stamping of 
some restless horse. Who can foresee that to-morrow 
a deed shall be done that shall consecrate for all time 
this quiet Jersey village, and that the benedictions of 
a grateful people shall descend forever upon Mon- 
mouth Court-House! 

By ten o'clock all is hushed. It is a hot night, with- 
out a breath of wind. The woods in the northwest are 
as still as death, their leaves drooping and motionless, 
and the summer sky is unobscured by a single cloud. 
A sharp lookout is kept down the road and on the edge 
of the woods towards Englishtown, for in the after- 
noon a deserter has come in with the information that 
'Hhe rebels are extended along our left flank, and are 
very numerous." But the darkness passes without the 
sign of an enemy. 

CLINTON ATTEMPTS TO STEAL AWAY 
At the early dawn there is bustle and noise in the 
camp about the Court-House. The reveille sounds and 
the Hessians are astir. The air is full of the noise of 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 49 

neighing horses and chattering men. The baggage- 
wagons begin to move into the road to Middletown, the 
Une of march is formed, and as the sun rises, about half- 
past four, Knyphausen's division has begun to move. 
Five o'clock comes, and with it daylight. The fresh 
breath of the morning is pleasant after the hot night, 
but the cloudless sky and the heavy air promise a try- 
ing day. All along the road the camp is stirring, the 
different regiments forming into line— the Light 
Infantry and Hessian Grenadiers on the right, the 
Guards, the First and Second Grenadiers, the High- 
landers, the loyal battalions, and the Queen's Rangers 
each in turn. At six the hot day has l)egun, but it is 
nearly eight before the column has started. It is a 
splendid sight, and one that this quiet county will 
never see again, this perfectly-appointed army moving 
with its long train of artillery and baggage along the 
road. Here is the Hessian: ''a towering, brass-fronted 
cap, mustaches covered with the same material that 
colors his shoes, his hair, plastered with tallow and 
flour, tightly drawn into a long appendage reaching 
from the back of his head to his waist, his blue uniform 
almost covered ])y the broad belts sustaining his car- 
touch-box, his brass-hilted sword, and his bayonet; a 
yellow waistcoat with flaps, and yellow breeches met 
at the knee by black gaiters — thus heavily equipped," 
he moves '' like an automaton " down the road. See the 
British Grenadier, tall and stalwart, with smooth- 
shaven face and powdered hair, on his head a pointed 
cap of black leather fronted with a gilded ornament — 



50 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

his coat of scarlet, with colhir and cuffs of buff trimmed 
with red — a broad, white leather strap ''over the left 
shoulder carrying his cartridge-box — one over the 
right bears his bayonet-scabbard which hangs at his 
left thigh, and where they cross on his breast there is a 
plate of brass with the number of his regiment. His 
breeches of w^hite are protected by long black leggings. 
The accoutrements of all are in perfect order, their 
equipment complete, and one after another the regi- 
ments break into column and march toward the east. 
The sun has already risen above the high ground near 
the sea, the birds that have been twittering in the 
branches have ceased to sing — Knyphausen with the 
long train of heavily lumbering baggage has crossed the 
open plain, and still the lines of scarlet are passing by 
the little Court-House. Where are the Americans? — 
the chance to fight a battle is almost gone. 

WASHINGTON ORDERS LEE TO ATTACK THE ENEMY 

Somewhere in that still and silent wood Dickinson's 
militia have been Avatching through the night. With 
the first noise in the British camp they are alert. No 
movement of the enemy escapes them, and as Knyphau- 
sen begins his march a messenger gallops off at full 
speed through the woods. He dashes into camp at 
five o'clock. An order is at once sent to General Lee 
to follow and attack ''unless there should be very power- 
ful reasons to the contrary," and the main army is 
ordered under arms. Meantime Lee has his detach- 
ment ready. Butler of Pennsylvania with two hundred 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 61 

men marches first; Scott's brigade and a part of Wood- 
ford's, about six hundred, follow; Varnum's brigade, 
under Lieutenant-Colonel Olney, six hundred strong; 
Wayne's detachment of one thousand; Scott with an- 
other of fourteen hundred, and Maxwell with about one 
thousand bringing up the rear. Distributed among 
these are twelve pieces of artillery. At seven o'clock 
the advance has reached the old Presbyterian Church 
on the side of the road, east of Englishtown, and is 

Percival Butler was born at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, April 4, 
1760. He was commissioned first lieutenant in the Third Penn- 
sylvania regiment, 1777, when he was only eighteen years old. 
He wintered at Valley Forge, served in the battle of Monmouth, 
and was at the capture of Cornwallis. He went south with 
General Wayne, and remained there until the close of the war; 
emigrated to Kentucky in 1784, where he was appointed adjutant- 
general in 1812. 

General William Woodford was born in Virginia; early 
distinguished in the French and Indian ^ars. When the Vir- 
ginia troops assembled at Williamsburg in 1775, in consequence of 
the hostile attitude assumed by Lord Duhmore, Woodford was 
appointed colonel of the Second Regiment. Patrick Henry was 
colonel of the First. In the battle at Great Brid^ge, on the Eliza- 
beth River, in December, 1775, he was distinguished for his 
bravery. Congress promoted him to brigadier, and placed him 
in command of the first Virginia brigade. He was in the battles 
of Brandywine and Monmouth, and was made a prisoner at 
Charleston, in South Carolina, during the siege of 1780. He was 
taken to New York by the British, where he died on the 13th of 
November, 1780, in the forty-sixth year of his age. 

Jeremiah Olney was born in Providence, Rhode Island, in 
1750; was made lieutenant-colonel at the beginning of the Revolu- 



52 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

distant from the British about three miles. A road 
nearly straight leads from this point to the Court- 
House. 

THE BATTLEFIELD OF MONMOUTH 

Let us take a look at the country that lies between. 
It is a rolling country, well covered with timber. Just 
beyond the Church, as one goes towards Monmouth, 
the road descends a hill and crosses a morass, through 
which a stream of water flows toward the south and 
west. A long causeway of logs has made the place 
passable, and on the eastern side the hill rises quickly 

tionary War, and was often the chief officer of the Rhode Island 
forces. He fought conspicuously at Red Bank, Springfield, 
Monmouth, and Yorktown, and after the war he was collector 
of the port of Providence and president of the Rhode Island 
Society of Cincinnati. He died in Providence, November 10, 
1812. 

Varnum: See page 34. Wayne: Page 23. Maxwell: Page 
24. 

Old Presbyterian Church: It is situated a short distance 
from the road leading from Freehold to Englishtown, and about 
midway between those places. It was erected in 1752 on the site 
of a former and smaller one; hence it was called the new church. 
It is of wood, shingled and painted white; at present a very dingy 
color. Here Whitefield, Brainerd, the Tennents, and WoodhuU 
preached. 

This causeway was near the parsonage. The morass, which 
was then a deep quagmire and thickly covered with bushes, 
is now mostly fine meadow land, coursed by a clear streamlet, 
spanned by a bridge. 



54 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

to a considerable elevation. The road now continues 
through a piece of timber, which is large and heavy on 
the left, but just beyond the edge of it, on the right, are 
the open fields of three farms, known as Tennent's, 
Wikoff's, and Carr's. The two latter are divided by 
a deep ravine, which crosses the road at right angles, 
about half-way between the causeway and the Court- 
House. The wood on the left extends almost to the 
village, and covers the side of a bluff which forms the 
western boundary of the plain of Monmouth. Beneath 
this bluff, running due north from the Court-House, is a 
deep and almost impassable morass. There are but 
three houses between the Church, at which the advance 

Rev. William Tennent, pastor of the First Presbyterian 
Church in Freehold, N. J., was born in 1705. He was pastor of 
this church for forty-three years and six months. During 
an attack of fever,, he lay for three days in a trance, and 
on his recovery again gave a description of what he saw and heard 
in the celestial world. A full account of this extraordinary event 
was published by Dr. Elias Boudinot. William Tennent died 
March 8, 1777, aged seventy-one years and six months. The 
parsonage farm was one and one-half miles from the church. 

This middle ravine was on the farm now belonging to D. De- 
marest Denise. It was then swampy, but now, in consequence 
of underdraining, not much evidence of swamp remains except 
depression in the ground. This farm belonged to the Rhea 
family, who resided in Freehold, and the tenant on the farm was 
named Carr, and hence the house thereon was called, in the ac- 
counts of the battle, the "Carr House." This farm extended 
nearly up to the village, and between it and the parsonage farm 
was the Wikoff farm, so there were only two farms between the 
village and the parsonage farm. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 55 

has halted, and the village, the first called the Parson- 
age, in the open field, just after one ascends the hill, 
and the second and third, known as Wikoff's and Carr's, 
on the western and eastern sides of the ravine that 
separates them. The morass westward of the Parson- 
age begins more than a mile to the northeast, and, fol- 
lowing the stream which makes it, sweeps around be- 
tween the hills to the southeast, where it joins another 
that runs westwardly. It is a bog a couple of hundred 
yards in width, deep and impassable, save at the cause- 
way. The distance from the Court-House to the ravine 
between Carr's house and Wikoff's is about a mile; 
to the causeway, across the large morass, a trifle more 
than two miles. Such is the country that separates the 
armies. 

THE FIRST SKIRMISH 

As the advance under Lee approaches the long cause- 
way, a few scattering shots are heard and it is halted. 
Scott's brigade have advanced up the. morass, the rest 
formed upon the western hill. A few of Dickinson's 
militia, down the road toward the Court-House, have 
encountered a flanking party of the British. As the 
troops halt, a stout, ruddy-faced officer rides up. It is 
Anthony Wayne, whom Lee has summoned to com- 
mand the advance. There is a report that the enemy 
are near. Wayne takes his spy-glass, but can discover 
only a party of the country people. Dickinson conies 
in haste to Lee. He is sure that the enemy are march- 
ing from the Court-House. Lee doubts the story, but 
orders a brigade to form at the left, facing a road by 



56 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

which Dickinson expects the enemy. But the intelH- 
gence is contradictory, and, after a few minutes delay, 
Lee in impatience pushes the troops forward across the 
causeway. 

Down the road toward the Court-House they move 
rapidly, marching briskly in spite of the heat, which by 
this time has become oppressive. They are a sad con- 
trast to the well-equipped enemy they go to meet. 
They have no uniforms. Linen shirts and coats of 
butternut, home spun, and made, and dyed, are the best 
among them, and few have these. ''They are so nearly 
naked that it is a shame to bring them into the field," 
says Major Jameson of Maryland, and Lee complains 

John Jameson, of Maryland, was made a captain of dragoons 
June 16, 1776; major of first Continentals, March 31, 1777; 
wounded near Valley Forge, January 21, 1778. 

The Day: 'The 2<Sth of June, a day memorable in the annals of 
the Revolution, was the Christian Sabbath. The sky was cloudless 
over the plains of Monmouth when the morning dawned, and the 
sun came up with all the fervor of the summer solstice. It was 
the sultriest day of the year; not a zephyr moved the leaves; 
nature smiled in her beautiful garments of flowers and foliage, 
and the birds carolled with delight, in the fulness of love and 
harmony. Man alone was the discordant note in the universal 
melody. He alone, the proud "lord of creation," claiming for 
his race the sole mundane possession of the divine image, disturbed 
the chaste worship of the hour, which ascended audibly from the 
groves, the streams, the meadows, and the woodlands. On that 
calm Sabbath morning, in the midst of paradisal beauty, twenty 
thousand men girded on the implements of hellish war to maim and 
destroy each oth(n- — to sully the green grass and fragrant flowers 
with human blood." 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 57 

that they have no uniforms, colors, or marks to dis- 
tinguish the regiments from each other. But they 
march well and with a soldierly air, thanks to the train- 
ing of Steuben at Valley Forge. About half-past 
eight o'clock they approach the Court-House. The 
rear-guard of the British has passed through it, but a 
party of both infantry and horse are drawn up in the 
open ground to the northwestward. The Americans 
halt under cover of the woods, and Lee and Wayne ride 
forward to reconnoitre. A messenger stops Lee, and 
Wayne goes on alone. There appear to be about five 
hundred foot, and in front of them three hundred horse- 
men — the famous Queen's Rangers Hussars, under the 
command of Lieutenent-Colonel Simcoe. Wayne or- 
ders Butler out of the woods into the open close to the 
Court-House. The enemy slowly retire as the Ameri- 
cans approach. A few of Butler's men fire, and the 
Rangers fall back with the infantry precipitately into 



John Graves Simcoe was born near Exeter, England, Febru- 
ary 25, 1752; enlisted in the army in 1770; came to America with 
a company of foot, with which he fought in the battles of Brandy- 
wine and Monmouth; raised a battalion which he called "The 
Queen's Rangers," trained them for light and active service; and 
with them performed important services, especially in the South. 
In June, 1779, Clinton gave him the local rank of lieutenant-' 
colonel. His light corps was always in advance of the army and 
engaged in gallant exploits. His corps was disbanded after the 
war and its officers were placed on half-pay. Simcoe was gov- 
ernor of Canada in 1791-94. He was governor of San Domingo 
in 1796-97. He died in England, October 26, 1806. 



58 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

the village. Long shall that spot be neglected and for- 
gotten, but the time shall come when, on another 28th 
of June, the sons of America, beneath peaceful skies, 
shall build with pious services upon that sloping field 
a monument to mark forever the i:)lace where the first 
shot was fired and the Battle of Monmouth was begun! 
And now, as the enemy are apparently moving rapidly 
off into the plain, Butler files to the left of their left flank, 
and sends word to Wa^^ne that the enemy are retreat- 
ing. The General, in reply, gallops up and halts the 
Pennsylvanians in the edge of a wood, close to the 
Court-House, from which they can see the British in 
regular order, horse, foot, and artillery, retreating 
toward the eastward. It is evident that they are leav- 
ing the ground in haste. Meantime the detachments 
of Scott, Grayson, and Varnum have halted on the side 
of the morass which bounds the plain of Monmouth, 
half a mile or more to the northward of the position 

Scott: See page 41. 

Varnum: See page 34. 

William Grayson was born in Prince William County, Vir- 
ginia; was appointed one of the commissioners to treat with Sir 
William Howe respecting prisoners while the army was at Valley 
Forge. In the battle of Monmouth he commanded a regiment in 
the advanced corps and behaved with valor. At the close of the 
war he returned to his native state, and was elected to Congress 
in 1784. In 17SS he was a member of the Virginia Convention 
to consider the adoption of the Constitution, and, with Patrick 
Henry, he opposed the ratification of that instrument. He died 
March 12, 1790. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 59 

of Wayne and Butler. From all these points the enemy 
can be seen moving rapidly out of the village across the 
open plain. Hot-headed Wayne grows impatient. 
At the edge of the wood he has found a place where the 
morass can be crossed, and orders Butler forward. 
At the same moment a swarthy man on horseback 
gallops up to Lee. He has been near the enemy, and 
is sure they are a rear-guard of only one thousand men — 
considerably separated from the main body. He offers 
to take a detachment and dou})le their right flank. It 
is black David Foreman — commander of the Monmouth 
County militia — the terror of the Tories. 

GENERAL LEE'S INCOMPETENCY 

Lee spitefully rephes, ''I know my business," and 
Foreman retires in disgust. But what is that business? 
Surely not to let the enemy move away under his guns 
as if upon parade. The precious moments are flying — 
the Rangers in the rear-guard are half a mile out of the 
village already, continuing their march, when Captain 
Mercer, of Lee's staff, rides up to him. He has been 
down the road toward the Court-House and has seen 
a large encampment of the enemy, which they have just 
left, for the chairs are standing and water lies there 

David Forman (or Foreman) was born near Elizabethtown, 
New Jersey. He commanded the New Jersey militia at German- 
town, and was known by the nickname of ''BLack David" among 
the Jersey loyalists, owing to his excessive cruelty toward those 
who did not favor the Revolution. After the war he was judge 



60 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

freshly spilt; a countryman tells him that there is a 
strong force, about two thousand, still behind the 
Court-House. ''Then I shall take them," says Lee, and 
orders the detachments on the left to march into the 
plain, to turn their right. They quit the woods, de- 
scend the bluff, cross the morass, and advance nearly 
half a mile into the plain — Grayson's in advance, 
Jackson's a hundred yards behind, Scott's next to Jack- 
son's, and Maxwell's Jerseymen in the rear, on the 
outer edge of the morass. Wayne is now far in front 
in the open ground. On his right, on a little elevation, 
he has posted Eleazer Oswald, with two guns. Varnum's 



of the county court and a member of the Council of State. He 
was also one of the original members of the Order of Cincinnati. 
He died about 1812. 

Captain John F. Mercer, of Virginia, was made first lieu- 
tenant of the Third Virginia Regiment February 26, 1776; was 
wounded at Brandywine September 11, 1777; made captain to 
the rank June 27, 1777; made major June 8, 1778, and assigned 
as aide-de-camp to General Charles Lee; resigned in October, 
1779; died August 30, 1821. 

Eleazer Oswald was a native of Massachusetts, and was 
among the earliest patriots of the Revolution. He exhibited 
great bravery at the siege of Quebec, where he commanded the 
forlorn hope after Arnold was wounded. In 1777 he was com- 
missioned a lieutenant-colonel in Lamb's regiment of artillery and 
soon after distinguished himself with Arnold, at Compo, at the 
head of recruits raised in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. 
For his bravery at the battle of Monmouth he was highly com- 
mended by generals Knox and Lee. Being outranked, soon after 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 61 

brigade, of the Rhode Island Hne, is on the left, Butler's 
regiment in front, in the rear of all Wesson, Livingston, 
and Stewart. Suddenly the enemy halt and form in 
line of battle. A regiment of cavalry supported by 
infantry advance towards Butler, and several guns to 
the eastward open fire. Oswald replies effectively with 
his two pieces on the height, and Butler prepares to 
receive an attack. Down come the British cavalry in 
full charge. Butler reserves his fire till they are near, 
when a well-directed volley l^reaks them, and they 
retire in disorder through the infantry, throwing them 
into confusion. At this the British suddenly turn back 
and march towards the Court-House. They appear 

this engagement he resigned his commission and left the service. 
He entered into the printing and publishing business at Phila- 
delphia and was soon appointed public printer. He fell a vic- 
tim to a fever which desolated New York in 1795, and was 
buried in St. Paul's churchyard on the 2d of October of that year. 

James Wesson (Massachusetts), major of Gerrish's Massachu- 
setts regiment from May 19th to December, 1775; lieutenant-col- 
onel of the Twenty-sixth Continental infantry, January 1, 1776; 
Colonel of the Ninth IVIassachusetts Regiment, November 1, 1776; 
wounded at Monmouth; died October 15, 1809. 

Walter Stewart was born about 1756; recruited a company 
in Pennsylvania at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War; was 
appointed captain in 1776, and later in the same year aide-de- 
camp to General Gates; was commissioned colonel of Pennsyl- 
vania Regiment of Foot in June, 1777; served with distinction 
throughout the war; breveted brigadier-general in 1783; later 
became major-general of Pennsylvania militia. He died in 
Philadelphia, June 14, 1796. 



62 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

very strong; it is evident that the whole rear division 
has returned to prevent a demonstration against the 
baggage. Wayne sends to Lee for more troops. Lee 
answers that it is a feint, and that he does not wish the 
enemy to be vigorously attacked until his flank is ex- 
posed. The British approach the Court-House in 
great force. Lee directs Lafayette to fall back to the 
Court-House with the brigade of Varnum, and Stew- 
art's and Livingston's regiments. Wayne, meantime, 
is chafing with impatience. The enemy are crossing 
his front — he cannot get troops enough to strike them 
with effect, and Oswald's ammunition has given out. 
Just at this moment General Scott rides up — a hot- 
headed Virginian, as gallant and full of fight as Wayne 
himself. From his command on the left, far out in the 
plain, he has seen the troops under Lafayette apparently 
retreating toward the Court-House. Alarmed at this, 
and having tried in vain to get his cannon across the 
morass, he has ordered his men to retire behind it and 
form in the woods bej^ond, from which they came. 
Here he has left them, and galloped down to learn what 
is the matter. Wayne is in equal wonderment. One 
of his aides has just come from General Lee with the 
startling information that the whole right is falling back 
in haste from the Court-House; but he brings no orders. 
Together Scott and Wayne ride there. The troops have 
already left. Wayne sends an aide to Lee to beg that 
they might be ordered back to the place from which 
they retired, the enemy being still a mile away. Major 
Fishbourne returns. He has found General Lee, whose 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 63 

only answer is that he will see General Wayne himself. 
It is now about eleven o'clock. Furious with disap- 
pointment, Wayne sends a third time. Will not Gen- 
eral Lee halt the main body to cover the retreat of 
General Scott? His aides return without an answer; 
the troops are still retiring in some confusion nearly a 
mile in the rear, in front of the ravine by Carr's house. 
The enemy are close at hand. Wayne orders Butler 
out of the plain in haste, while he and Scott watch in 
the orchard near the village. 

A DISORDERLY RETREAT 

At this moment up gallops Richard Meade. He is 
an aide of Washington's, and has ridden forward by 
the General's orders at the first sound of the cannon- 
ading. He has met the troops retreating in disorder 
near the defile by Carr's House. There he has found 
General Lee, who tells him that they are all in confusion, 
but has no message for the Commander-in-Chief. 
Meade gallops to the village; the enemy are there, and 

William Fishburne (or Fishbourne) was born in 1760; died 
at Walterborough, South Carolina, November 3, 1819. He was 
on the staff of General Anthony Wayne, to whom he was aide- 
de-camp at the capture of Stony Point, and afterward attained 
the rank of major-general. He was a member of the convention 
that framed the Constitution of South Carolina, and was sub- 
sequently a member of the legislature. 

Richard Kidder Meade, an American soldier of the Revolu- 
tion, was born in Nansewood County, Virginia, about 1750. He 
was one of General Washington's aides. He died in 180.5. 



64 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

already the head of their column appears this side the 
Court-House. Scott hurries to his command, while 
Wayne retires slowly with Meade toward Carr's House, 
pursued by the enemy's horsemen. The British ad- 
vance is now between Scott and the retreating troops 
with Lee and Lafayette. A rapid march through the 
woods to the northward alone enables the former to 
rejoin the army. He comes out into the large morass, 
and crosses it far to the north and eastward of the old 
Presbyterian Church. Meantime, what has l^ecome of 
General Lee? When the enemy first turned back in 
force he was on the left, watching, with the intention 
of turning their right flank. 0])serving them to ap- 
proach in force, he directed the troops on the right to 
retire and form near the Court-House. Arrived there, 
and finding the position less strong than he supposed, 
he gave orders to fall back. Confusion followed. The 
heat was intense. The men were nearly fainting with 
fatigue. The horses of the aides-de-camp could hardly 
stand. Orders that were given were not delivered, and 
orders were delivered that had never been given by the 
General. Contradictory directions made matters worse. 
Near Carr's House a regiment was i:)osted at a fence, 
and presently withdrawn. Du Portail insisted that 
the position here was a strong one. Lee declared that it 
was execrable, and commanded by an eminence on the 
British side. Back the troops kept falling — forming 

Note. — Tho troops had b(M'n under arms for twolvo hours, and 
during nnurh of the day the thermometer stood at ninety-six 
degrees. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 65 

now in line, and the next minute ordered to retire. 
No one knew why or whither, nor did Lee take pains to 
check the disorder. The officers were furious, the men 
dejected. There had been no fighting to speak of — 
the enemy did not seem dangerously strong — the chance 
to fight him on good terms had appeared so favorable; 
it was inexplicable. It is now nearly twelve o'clock. 
In front of the ravine near Carr's House there is a tem- 
porary halt. General Lee himself orders Jackson's 
Massachusetts regiment to form behind a fence, but 
hardly has it done so when he commands it to retire 
beyond the ravine. A part of Varnum's brigade halts 
for ten minutes in an orchard, but the enemy is coming 
on rapidly, they too retire beyond the ravine. As the 
troops are falling back a countryman rides up to General 
Lee. It is Peter Wikoff, who lives in the farm-house 
between the Parsonage and Carr's. He knows the 
country well — what can he do? Lee asks him where 
there is a strong position to which the army can retire. 
He points to the west and south. But there is an al- 
most impassable morass in the way. It can be crossed 
on logs. Too late to make a bridge. Beyond the cause- 
way then there are high hills. Lee urges him to ride 
back and halt some regiment on the ground. He gal- 
lops off at speed. All is disorder, the troops retiring 

Henry Jackson (Massachusetts) was colonel of one of the six- 
teen Continental regiments January 12, 1777; his regiment was de- 
signated as the Sixteenth Masaehusetts July 23, 1780; transferred 
to Ninth Massachusetts regiment January 1, 1S81; breveted 
brigadier-general September 30, 1783; tlied January 4, 1809. 



66 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

rapidly, so fagged with the heat that many faint. Here 
is Olney, with the Rhode Islanders, crossing the ravine; 
yonder, near Carr's House, is Stewart of Pennsylvania, 
keeping his panting men together; the gallant Ramsay is 
close at hand; Maxwell has crossed the ravine, and is 
forming his Jersey men in the woods on the north of 
the road; while Oswald tries to get his guns across the 
defile. 

All is uproar and confusion; shouts of go back! go 
back! drive on! drive on! are heard above the din, and 
all the while the dropping fire of musketry in the rear 
shows that the enemy is close at hand. Five thousand 
men have fallen back in disorder nearly two miles, in 
the face of a constant and vigorous pursuit. It is 
extraordinary that there is no panic. But both men 
and officers are too angry to be frightened; there is 
no breaking of the ranlvs; no running among the troops 
— it is a sullen retreat. The men halt at the first order, 
form like veterans, and only retire when commanded to 
do so. Some faint with heat and fall. All are panting 
for water — the sweat streaming from them, their tongues 
dry and swollen, their faces flushed, their eyes blood- 
shot. The horses are completely broken doA\Ti. Many 
refuse to carry their riders, and half of the officers are on 
foot. And so through the hot wood and beneath the 
blazing sun, down one side of the ravine and up the 
other, the regiments of Lee's command fall back in dis- 
order along the road and through the fields of Wikoff's 
farm, towards the long causeways across the wide mo- 
rass, on the way to Englishtown. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 67 

The day that promised so well has begun in disaster. 
The Americans are in full retreat without a fight. 
Grayson's Marylanders and Patton's North Carolin- 
ians are about to cross the causeway — a part of Jack- 
son's Massachusetts regiment, under Lieutenant- 
Colonel Smith, are close behind them. Ogden's and 
Shreve's Jerseymen are descending the hill — the 
heights are covered with the retreating regiments. 
When suddenly down the western hill, toward the 
causeway, come at full speed two horsemen. They are 



John Patton (North Carolina) was made major of the Second 
North CaroUna Regiment September 1, 1775; lieutenant-colonel 
of the First North Carolina Regiment May 7, 1776; colonel of the 
Second North CaroHna Regiment November 22, 1777; taken 
prisoner at Charleston May, 1780; retired from service June 1, 
1783. 

Aaron Ogden was born in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, De- 
cember 3, 1756; graduated at Princeton in 1773; entered the 
Revolutionary Army in 1777 as captain under his brother Matthias 
and fought at Brandywine. He was brigade-major under Lee 
at Monmouth, and assistant aide-de-camp to Lord Stirling; aide 
to General Maxwell in Sullivan's expedition; in 1781 was with 
Lafayette in Virginia; led the infantry in storming a redoubt at 
Yorktown, and received the commendation of Washington. 
After the war he practised law and held many civil offices; was 
United States Senator from 1801-03, and governor of New Jer- 
sey from 1812-13. Li the War of 1812 he commanded the 
militia of New Jersey. He died in Jersey City, N. J., April 19, 
1839. 

Israel Shreve was a distinguished officer in the Continental 
army; was assigned to the New Jersey line during the entire period 



68 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

Fitzgerald and Harrison, of the Commander-in-chief's 
staff. Riding with him, near the Presbyterian Church, 
they have met a countryman on horseback. He has 
come, he says, from near the Court-House, and has 
heard that our people were retreating. General Wash- 
ington refuses to believe him, for he has heard no sound 
except a few discharges of cannon more than an hour 
before. The man points to a fifer, who has come up 
breathless. Yes, says the fifer, in affright, the Conti- 
nental troops are in retreat. Vexed at the story, which 
he cannot believe, the General orders the man into a 
light horseman's charge and hurries forward. Fifty 
paces down the road he meets some stragglers — one of 
them has come from the army. All the troops, he says, 
are falling back. The thing looks serious, but still the 
General will not believe it true. He sends Harrison 
and Fitzgerald forward to ascertain the facts. As they 



of the war. He commanded the Second Regiment ; was wounded 
in the thigh at the battle of Brandywine, September 11, 1777; 
after the war he settled in Ohio. 

John Fitzgerald (Virginia) was assigned to the Fifth Virginia 
Regiment March 1, 1776; made an aide-de-damp to General 
Washington; served to the close of the war. 

Robert H. Harrison was born in Maryland in 1745; read law 
and became chief-justice of the general court of Maryland. He 
was on the staff of General Washington from 1775-81. He 
is described as having been a man of distinguished talents, who 
enjoyed in a high degree the confidence of his fellow citizens. 
He died April 2, 1790. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 69 

descend the hill they encounter Grayson's men. Cap- 
tain Jones declares that the troops behind are in 
the same condition as his own. Lieutenant-Colonel 
Parke's men are in disorder. Wilham Smith, of Jack- 
son's regiment, cannot imagine why they have re- 
treated; he has lost but a single man. Beyond the 
causeway is Aaron Ogden, ''exceedingly exasperated," 
declaring with an oath that ''the troops are fleeing from 
a shadow." Shreve, of the next Jersey regiment, smiles 
bitterly ; he has retreated by order, but knows not why. 
Rhea, his lieutenant-colonel, cannot understand it, nor 
where to go. Howell, his major, has never seen the 
hke; and on the height General Maxwell confesses that 
he is wholly in the dark. The aides push on toward 
Carr's House. Here Mercer, of Lee's staff, says with 
warmth to Harrison, that if he will ride to the Court- 
House he will find reason enough in the numbers of the 
enemy; but Wayne declares that it is impossible to tell 
the cause of the retreat, for a very select body of men 



David Rhea was born in New Jersey; was made major of the 
Second New Jersey Regiment November 28, 1775; lieutenant- 
colonel, November 28, 1776; transferred to the Fourth New Jersey 
Regiment June 1, 1777; died June 4, 1821. 

Major Richard Howell (1754-1802) was made captain of 
the Second Battalion of the first establishment November 29, 
1775; brigade-major, September 4, 1776; major of the Second 
Battalion, November 28, 1776; an efficient officer; clerk of the 
New Jersey Supreme Court from 1788—93; governor of the 
State of New Jersey from 1794 to 1801. 



70 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

have this day been drawn off from troops far inferior in 
number. And all this while General Lee sits for twenty 
minutes by a fence, without giving an order or making 
an attempt to stop the enemy. One of the French 
engineers comes to Fitzgerald — the ground he thinks 
very advantageous for stopping the enemy; he begs for 
two pieces of cannon. Oswald has but four pieces left, 
the others have retreated with their brigades, and his 
men are so fatigued with heat that they are dropping 
beside the guns. But he will post them here, and open 
on the enemy as they approach from the village. On 
come the British through the open fields, in perfect 
order, marching in two columns, their artillery and 
horse between them, and Lee retires hastily with some 
scattered troops beyond the ravine. They are within 
quarter of a mile — the American rear just crossing the 
ravine. The case is desperate. ''The most sanguine 
hope," says young Laurens, who has seen it all, 
''scarcely extends ... to an orderly retreat." It is 
an awful moment for America. Was it for this that 
these gallant fellows ])ore the dull tortures of the win- 
ter? Was it for this that they have trudged through 
pouring rain and torrid sun — now ankle-deep in mud 
and now with their feet buried in the burning sand? 
Was it for this that they have covered Charles Lee 



John Laurens became an aide to Washington at the outbreak 
of the Revokition. He fought at Brandywine, Monmouth, Ger- 
mantown, Charleston, and Savannah. He also fought at York- 
town, and while serving under Greene was killed in a skirmish. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 71 

with confidence and honor, and gone forth under him 
from happy homes to meet the proudest army in the 

world? 

WASHINGTON AND LEE 

But see yonder in the west — beyond the long cause- 
way the troops have stopped retreating! Grayson and 
Patton have halted half-way up; on this edge of the 
morass Ogden and Shreve are falling into line, and on 
the crest of the distant hill are the heads of columns, 
apparently advancing. There is a sudden halt as 
down the hill dashes a tall horseman. A group of 
officers try to follow, but he rides too fast. Over the 
bridge and up the road he rushes like the wind, his horse 
in a lather of sweat as he drives the rowels in. Up the 
hill he comes as fast as his horse can run, his manly 
figure and perfect horsemanship commanding admira- 
tion; his face flushed with excitement, his lips com- 
pressed, his often languid eye flashing an angry fire, 
his usually white brow as black as night. See him as he 
dashes through the lines — great as he is, never greater 
than to-day — checking the retreat by his very presence, 
arresting disaster by a glance, and in an instant chang- 
ing defeat to victory ! On a sudden he reins his foaming 
horse, and Washington and Lee are face to face. As it 
was three-and-twenty years ago, it is to-day; as on the 
banks of Monongahela so on the heights of Freehold. 

On the banks of Monongahela: Braddock's army was 
defeated on the banks of the Monongahela, and Washington 
covered the retreat with the remnant of the colonial troops and 
saved the flying regulars from destruction. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 73 

It is the Englishman that shall be beaten and the 
American that shall cover his retreat; it is the Regular 
that shall run and the Provincial that shall stand his 
ground; it is Lee that shall lose the day; it is Washington 
that shall save the army! And what a contrast! — 
the one thin as a skeleton, his features plain, his eyes 
prominent, his nose enormous, his whole appearance 
singular and unprepossessing; the other broad, with 
an open countenance and manly air, his figure that of 
an accomplished gentleman, his gestures graceful, 
his presence strangely commanding and impressive. 
They are almost the same age, but Lee looks old and 
wrinkled, while Washington appears in the prime of 
unusual health and vigor. And thus for the last time 
they sit looking at each other. But for a moment only, 
for the indignation of Washington has burst restraint. 
''What, sir, is the meaning of all this?" he asks, in a 
tone of thunder. ''Sir, sir," stammers the other, and 
is dumb. "I desire to know, sir, the meaning of this 
disorder and confusion," repeats Washington, his aspect 
in his anger really terrible to see. Lee answers confu- 
sedly — his orders have been misunderstood or disobeyed. 

The testimony of Lafayette, Knox, and twenty-seven officers 
at the Court-martial of General Lee simply indicates one fact — 
that the division was never concentrated, received no definite 
orders, and handled itself. The apology for these facts will be 
found in the record of the battle. 

"The question involved is this: Did General Lee have no knowl- 
edge of the purpose of Washington in sending more than five 
thousand men to the front, with the entire army in light marching 
order, under pledge to support the advance? Doctor Griffiths 



74 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

particularly l)y General Scott. He did not choose to 
beard the whole British army with troops in that con- 
dition, and finally that the whole thing was against 
his opinion. '' Whatever your opinion may have been, 
sir, I expected my orders to have been obeyed." 
''These men cannot face the British grenadiers." 



stated, upon the trial of General Lee, that 'about one hour and a 
half after the action began, General Lee stated that all was going 
as he had expected; that his advice had. ever been, contrary to a 
general action; that it had been determined upon in a council of 
officers not to risk anything by an attack,' notwithstanding that 
he had received that morning positive orders from Washington to 
attack." — Battles of the American Revolution, by Carrington. 

There is some difference in the accounts given of this inter- 
view, but the general features are the same. There is no doubt 
that Washington was very angry. One writer says, ''His wrath 
was sublime." His manner as well as his language betokened 
great indignation, and Lee cowered before him, as much from 
the expression of his eyes as from his words. It has been said 
that he called Lee a "poltroon," and used an oath as a prefix to the 
word; but, in examining carefully the evidence taken at the court- 
martial of Lee, I do not find that any witness says that profane 
language was used. Weems states that Washington said, "For 
God's sake. General Lee, what is the cause of this ill-timed pru- 
dence?" and that Lee thereupon replied, "No man can boast a 
larger portion of that rascally virtue than your excellency." 
The best authenticated account of the interview,- and the one 
generally received, is as follows: "Washington said, 'I wish to 
know. General, what is the meaning of all this; why this disorder 
and confusion?' For a moment Lee was confused and could 
scarcely answer, but when he did recover his self-]wssession, he 
said, 'My orders have been misunderstood and disobeyed. I 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 75 

''They can," cried Washington, as he spurred away — 
''they can do it, and they shall!" Indeed there is not 
a moment to be lost. Harrison comes up from Carr's 
House with the news that the enemy are but fifteen 
minutes off, in great strength, approaching rapidly. 
Washington hurriedly examines the ground as Tilghman 



did not choose to beard the whole British army with troops in this 
condition, and besides the whole thing was against my opinion.' 
To which Washington replied, 'Whatever your opinion may have 
been, I expected my orders to have been obeyed, and you should 
not have vmdertaken it if you did not intend to carry it through.' 
Lee then said, 'These men cannot face the British grenadiers.' 
To which Washington answered, 'They can do it, and they shall.' " 

Lieutenant-colonel Tilghman, one of Washington's aides- 
de-camp, rode express to Philadelphia to carry the despatches 
of the chief announcing the joyful tidings of the surrender of 
Cornwallis. It was midnight when he entered the city. Thomas 
M'Kean was then President of the Continental Congress and 
resided in High Street near Second. Tilghman knocked at the 
door so vehemently that a watchman was disposed to arrest him 
as a disturber of the peace. M'Kean arose, and presently the 
glad tidings were made known — Cornwallis is taken. 

Nathaniel Ramsay, a soldier of the Revolution, was born in 
Pennsylvania May 1, 1751, and, after graduating at Princeton 
College, was admitted to the bar and practised law in Cecil 
County, Maryland. He entered the army very early in the Revo- 
lutionary War, and was in command of a Maryland regiment 
at the battle of Monmouth, when General Lee's retreat seemed so 
likely to result in the rout of Washington's entire command. 
When Washington re-formed the troops Ramsay rendered highly 
important service in holding the British in check, although at the 



76 BATTLE OF 3I0NM0UTH 

goes for Lieutenant-Colonel Rhea, who knows it well. 
It seems fit to make a stand upon, and the British must 
be stopped till the main army can be formed. Yonder 
are Walter Stewart and Nathaniel Ramsay coming out 
of the ravine. The General hastens to them. On 
them, he says, he shall depend to give the enemy a check; 
and under Wayne's eye, who arrives at the moment, the 
two regiments are formed in the woods on the left. 
Washington calls for artillery. Oswald's pieces have 
gone by. He orders them back and at once posts them on 
the right, with Livingston's regiment to support them. 
By this time the British have entered the wood in front 
of Stewart and Ramsay ; their guns open from the centre 
and their cavalry are beginning to traverse the ravine. 

THE BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

The Battle of Monmouth has begun. Having made 
this hurried disposition of his troops, Washington has- 
tens to the right. Here, close to Oswald's cannon, Lee 
and stout Henry Knox are watching the movements of 



loss of nearly all his oommand, for whioh he was highly com- 
mended and gratefully remembered by Washington. He died at 
Baltimore October 23, 1S17. 

Henry Knox was born in Boston in 1750. He was educated 
at a common school, and at the age of twenty years commenced 
the business of bookseller in his native town. He was a volunteer 
in the battle of Bunk(>r Hill, and for this and subsequent services 
Congress commissioned him a brigadier, and gave him com- 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 77 

the British. ''Will you command here, or shall I?'' 
the Chief demands of Lee. ''If you will, I will go to 
the rear and form the army." "I will," is the answer, 
"and will be one of the last men off the field." With 
a word to Knox for more artillery, Washington gallops 
to the rear. The sharp fire of musketry on the left, with 
the skilful practice of Oswald's cannoneers, have checked 
pursuit. The British halt and bring their guns to the 
front. A precious ten minutes has been gained. 
Meantime, in the rear, the army is coming up. The 
General is already across the causeway and is forming 
the men rapidly upon the height. It is a splendid posi- 
tion, the hills in semicircle rising steeply from the marsh 
in front, which can only be crossed by the narrow 
causeway. Greene is on the right, Stirling well posted 
on the left ; the practised eye of Steuben places the can- 
non skilfully, while Lafayette, on the crest of the ridge. 



mand of the artillery department of the army, which he retained 
during the whole war. He was always under the immediate 
command of Washington, and was with him in all his battles. 
After the capture of Cornwallis Congress commissioned him a 
major-general. In 1785 he succeeded Lincoln in the office of 
Secretary of War, which j^osition he held for eleven years, when 
he retired to private life. He died in 1806, at the age of fifty-six 
years. To General Knox is conceded the honor of suggesting 
that noble organization, the Society of the Cincinnati. 

The line of battle of the second division was formed just 
northerly of the west ravine, toward the old Tennent Church, 
with General Greene on the right, Lord Stirling on the left, 
Washington in the center, and Lafayette with the rear line. 



78 BATTLE OF MONMCtUTII 

commands the second line. The Frenchman, Duplessis 
de MancUiit, is sent with six pieces to Comb's Hill, 
more than half a mile on the extreme right, whence he 
can enfilade the enemy as they advance. The troops 
move into place with the precision of trained soldiers, 
better even, saj^s Hamilton, who watches them, than 
the British themselves; the guns are posted, and it is 
just in time. For the light-horse have crossed the 
ravine and threaten Oswald's guns, and on the left 
Stewart and Ramsay's men come slowly out of the 
woods fighting inch by inch, Americans and British 
mixed up together as they come. By Knox's order 

William Alexander, of New York, called Lord Stirling, was 
born in New York City. In 1757 he laid claim before the House 
of Lords to the earldom of Stirling, but in vain. In 1775 he be- 
came a colonel in the Revolutionarj^ Army, a brigadier-general in 
1776, and a major-general in 1777. He distinguished himself at 
Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth. 

Duplessis de Manduit was born in France and espoused the 
American cause. He was made captain of the Continental 
artillery April 15, 1777. In January, 1778, Washington recom- 
mended to Congress that this efficient officer be promoted to the 
rank of lieutenant-colonel, adding that the gallant conduct of 
this young gentleman at Brandywine, Germantown, and his 
distinguished services at Fort Mercer, where he united the offices 
of engineer and commandant of artillery, entitled him to pro- 
motion. November 5, 1778, Congress gave him a written testi- 
monial for his zeal, bravery, and good conduct during his services 
in the cause of America. He died in 1791. 

Comb's Hill: On the farm belonging to Aaron Comb, to 
whom it came from his father, and now the i)roperty of Dr. 
Sherman. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 79 

Oswald falls back a hundred yards, repeatedly un- 
limbering his guns and firing as he retreats. The crack- 
ling of the musketry is heavy, like a thousand bonfires, 
and every now and then a discharge from the artillery 
checks the red-coats and throws them into confusion. 
Wikoff 's fields are spotted with dead men; brave Ramsay 
is down wounded and a prisoner; Fitzgerald has been 
hit, and John Laurens slightly, as his horse falls dead 
beneath him. Slowly the Americans recede, and as 
slowly the British advance. And now they have 
reached the line between the Wikoff and the Tennent 
farms — a fence grown up with weeds and bushes and 
small trees that runs right across the line of the retreat. 
A small man rides up to Olney, who commands Varnum's 
brigade, and points to the heclge-row. He is a youth 
of two and twenty, with sharp features and a brilliant 
eye. His manner is earnest, and he speaks with an 
authority far beyond his years. It is Lieutenant 
Colonel Alexander Hamilton. The Rhode Islanders 
throw themselves behind the hedge-row, while Knox, 
without a minute's delay, posts two guns on a little 

Colonel Alexander Hamilton, one of the aides of Washing- 
ton, afterward the great statesman and financier, then only 
twenty-two years of age, rode up, and, dismounting, exclaimed in 
the ardor and enthusiasm of youth, ''General, you are betrayed; 
this army is betrayed, and the moment has arrived when every 
true son of America must be ready to die in her defense." To 
show the noble character of Washington, and perfect self-control 
and equanimity when his indignation had subsided, he made no 
reply except to say, "Colonel Hamilton, take horse and follow 



80 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

knoll a few paces in the rear. The British are within 
a dozen rods, advancing to the charge. A voUe}^ cracks 
from the hedge-row, and the guns behind open at short 
range. The enemy recoils; the infantry give place to 
the light-horsemen, who charge up within forty yards, 
but are driven back with heavy loss. On come the 
foot again, w^hen suddenly the guns of Duplessis on 
Comb's Hill open a cross-fire upon the right, and they 
stagger and fall back. The hedge-row is still held — the 
field in front strewn with dead, the rattle of musketry 
is incessant, the camion shake the very earth. But the 
left is turned — Olney's men have begun to fall behind 
the hedge — Hamilton is down, his horse shot dead, but 
he gathers himself up, bruised and hurt. The enemy 
have the woods on the left — their cavalry are threat- 
ening the right — their front line is nearly at the hedge— 
they outnumber the Rhode Islanders ten to one. Knox 
withdraws the guns; the Continentals leave the hedge- 
row; and, covered by the heavy cannonade from the 
hills in the rear, the whole body descends in pretty 
good order and crosses the long causeway. It is after 
two o'clock. The British are masters of the woods on 
the right and the open fields up to the hedge-row. 

But where is Wayne? The old Tennent Parsonage 
and barn lie in a hollow al)out a hundred yards westward 
of the hedge-row. Behind them ascends a ridge, which 

This hedgo-row, or bush-fence, stood on the line between the 
parsonage farm and the farm of one Peter Wikoff, and in history 
called the Wikoff farm, subsequently belonging to Major John 
Gordon. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 81 

presently falls rapidly to the morass in front of Greene. 
Here in an orchard behind the barn and Parsonage, 
about three hundred yards in advance of the main army, 
Wayne awaits attack. He has a few hundred Pennsyl- 
vanians under William Irvine and Thomas Craig, a 
Virginia regiment, and several pieces of artillery. 
Clinton has now brought up the flower of his army, 
and while his batteries engage the Americans on the 
distant heights he orders the grenadiers to dislodge 
Wayne. In splendid array his veterans advance, their 
scarlet coats in perfect line, their bayonets gleaming in 
the sunshine. Down they come toward the exposed 
position where the Pennsylvanians lie. A terrific fire 
opens on them, and they stagger and fall back. They 
rally, re-form, and advance again to the attack. A sec- 
ond volley greets them, and they are driven back bhnded 

William Irvine was born near Enniskillen, Ireland, about 
1742; emigrated to Pennsylvania in 1763. He became a colonel 
in 1776 and a brigadier-general in 1779. From 1781 to 1783 he 
commanded the troops stationed at Fort Pitt for the defense of the 
western frontier. He was chosen a member of Congress in 1787 
and again in 1793. He died in 1804, 

Thomas Craig was born in 1740. He was a captain in the 
Revolutionary War and participated in the Canadian campaign, 
after which he was appointed colonel of the Third Pennsylvania 
Regiment. He participated in the battles of Brandywine, Ger- 
mantown, and Monmouth. In the battle of Monmouth his 
regiment distinguished itself, being in the thickest part of the 
engagement. He was also at the surrender of Cornwallis. He 
served through the entire war. He died at Allentown, Pennsyl- 
vania, in 1832. 



82 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

and broken toward the cover of the woods. And all 
the while the cannon on both sides is thundering away. 
Daniel Morgan hears it yonder at Shumais Mills. He 
has sent to Lee for orders, ])ut can get none, and there, 
useless, he passes the long afternoon pacing like a lion 
in a cage. Clinton now tries to turn the left. The 
Highlanders attack Lord Stirling furiously, but his 
batteries check them, and his infantry advance and 
drive them back. Lieutenant-Colonel Aaron Burr 
pursues them into the meadow, but an order halts him 
in the open ground; his brigade suffers heavily — his 
horse is shot, and Rudolph Bunner, lieutenant-colonel 
of the Pennsylvania line, is killed. Attempting to 
turn, the right meets with no better fate. Wajme must 
be driven from his ground or the King's army must 
retire. 

On the ridge, behind the orchard, Wayne has two 
cannon posted. Their fire is most effective, but the 
men who serve them are fearfully exposed, and have 

Aaron Burr, the grandson of Jonathan Edwards, joined the 
army at the outbreak of the Revohition, and served in Arnold's 
expedition through Maine to Canada and afterward rose to the 
rank of colonel. He was one of the leading lawyers at the New 
York bar. In the presidential contest of 1800-01 Colonel Burr 
and Thomas Jefferson each received 73 electoral votes, and the 
House of Representatives chose Jefferson for President and Burr 
for Vice-president. A bitter political controversy between Burr 
and Hamilton led to a duel between the two at Weehawken, July 
11, 1804, in which Hamilton was mortally wounded. Burr spent 
many years in exile, and when he returned to America he was 
shunned by his neighbors. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 83 

fallen one by one; they are worked now with half the 
requisite force, and still the men are dropping. 

THE HEROINE OF MONMOUTH 
Suddenly as the British approach, a matross in the 
act of ramming the charge throws up his arms and falls 
headlong to the ground. The gun is useless and must 
be withdrawn, for there is none to take his place. 
Aye, but there is, for, yonder, rushing to the front, be- 
hold a woman! The wife of the fallen matross, she has 
been to the creek for water to keep the sponge wet. 
Seeing her husband fall, she dashes forward, snatches 
up the rammer, and drives it home with the vigor of a 

The place where Captain Molly served the gun was on the 
parsonage farm, about half-way between the hedge-row and the 
buildings. Dr. Thomas Dunn English, a New Jersey poet, thus 
describes this scene: 

"As we turned our flanks and centre in the path of death to enter. 

One of Knox's brass six-pounders lost its Irish cannoneer. 

And his wife, who 'mid the slaughter had been bearing pails of 

water 
For the gun and for the gunners, over his body shed a tear. 
'Move the piece; but there they found her, loading, firing that 

six-pounder, 
And she bravely, till we won, worked the gun. 

" Though like tigers fierce they fought us, to such zeal has 

Molly brought us, 
That though struck with heat and thirsting, yet of drink we felt 

no lack; 
There she stood, amid the clamor, swiftly handling sponge and 

rammer, 
While we swept with wrath condign on their line." 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 85 

veteran. A moment and the priming is ready — another 
and the gun belches forth in the very faces of the Brit- 
ish. There she stands, black with powder, in the 
blinding smoke, the shot raining about her, the dead 
and wounded at her feet, plying the rammer with a 
furious energy, and keeping that heated gun busy at 
its deadly work! And there in the midst of that con- 
flict, the figure of Molly Pitcher, the woman cannoneer 
of Monmouth, goes down to history. But see. Sir 
Henry is ready for his final effort. From the woods on 
the northeast across the open ground before the hedge- 
row, in the face of a heavy cannonade from the Ameri- 
cans on Comb's Hill, the grenadiers advance. Veter- 
ans of many a well-won field, they move steadily to the 
attack. The picked men of the Royal army, perfect in 
equipment and in the practice of arms, and never more 
magnificent or better handled than to-day, they sweep 
onward towards the little Parsonage and barn. It is 
a moment of dreadful suspense to the patriots upon the 
heights. Surely the Pennsylvanians will be swept 

Molly Pitcher's right name was Mary McCauley. The 
venerable widow of General Hamilton has described her as a "red- 
haired, freckle-faced young Irish woman, with a handsome pierc- 
ing eye." The scene of her loading and firing the cannon at the 
battle of Monmouth is depicted in bronze relief on the battle mon- 
ument at Freehold. There has been an impression for many 
years in many quarters that proper honor was not done this 
remarkable woman for her action in this famous engagement, but 
this is an error. She died in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in January, 
1833, at the age of seventy-nine years, her days having been spent 
in comparative comfort. 



86 BATTLE OF MONMOXJTH 

like chaff before them. Nearer and nearer they come, 
in ''magnificently stern array" of glowing scarlet and 
glittering steel, their bayonets fixed, advancing silently 
without a shot, while the cannon on the distant hills 
shakes the earth beneath their feet. Who is there to 
resist them? A few hundred Pennsylvanians drawn up 
in a little orchard and behind a wooden barn and farm- 
house — a handful of yeomen in their shirt-sleeves, 
armed with old-fashioned muskets, awaiting the charge 
of the British grenadiers. The odds against the 
Americans are fearful, as the well-trained enemy sweeps 
down. But not a man among them moves. Some- 
where in that orchard is Anthony Wayne himself, watch- 
ing the foe with steady glance, his teeth set, his cheek 
flushed. ''Wait," he tells his men, "till they are close 
at hand, and then pick off the king birds." 

On comes the unbroken column, apparently resist- 
less, in the full blaze of the afternoon's sun. In front, 

Henry Monckton, called Colonel Monckton, was one of the 
most honorable officers in the sei-vice of the British. He was 
accomplished, brave, of splendid personal appearance, and of 
irreproachable moral character. He was in the battle of Long 
Island, 1776, where he was shot through the body and lay for 
many weeks at the point of death. He recovered, and for his 
gallantry on that occasion was promoted to be lieutenant -colonel, 
and was in command of the battalion at the Battle of Monmouth 
in which the First and Second Grenadiers bore a conspicuous part, 
and in a charge the heroic Monckton was mortally wounded. 
The spot where he was killed is said to be about eight rods north- 
east of the old parsonage of the Tennent Church, and he was 
buried about six feet from the west end of the church. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 87 

in the splendid uniform of a lieutenant-colonel, is their 
commander, Henry Monckton, the Viscount Galway's 
son, waving his sword and calling on the grenadiers to 
''charge." They have swept through the open field, 
they have passed the hedge-row, they have begun to 
descend the slope beyond, their paces quicken, the front 
rank has almost reached the barn — the whole column is 
in full charge. There is a moment of suspense. And 
then, with a crash, a sheet of flame from Parsonage and 
barn and fence and orchard leaps forth to meet them, 
and in an instant a dense cloud of smoke has hidden them 
from view. A moment later the cloud has broken, and 
here and there glimpses can be seen of men in deadly 
combat — red-coated grenadiers and yeomen in shirt- 
sleeves mixed in inextricable confusion. See as the 
smoke lifts, Wayne's men have leaped the fence coat- 
less, their sleeves rolled up, and dashed into the melee, 
and yonder in the hollow of the field they are fighting 
hand to hand with bayonet thrust and clubbed guns over 
a lifeless bodj^ It is his who a moment ago cheered on 
his men to victory — his breast bloody with wounds, his 
scarlet coat stained and torn as the fight rages about 
him. Now his men press forward, and again are driven 
back, as the Americans from barn and orchard throw 
themselves headlong into the struggle. The cracking 
of the musketry is incessant — the cries of the combatants 
can be heard, and all the while, above the din, the guns 
upon the heights keep up ''the heaviest cannonading 
ever heard in America." And now beyond the rim of 
smoke the grenadiers are faUing back in groups to- 



88 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

gethcr, broken and confused. The Americans have 
Monckton's body and are driving his men before them 
in retreat. Back up the sloping field — through the 
broken hedge-row — across the open ground — toward the 
woods beyond, faster and faster go the British — in 
confused mass, their ranks broken — their battalions 
shattered — their leader killed! At last — at last — in 
open ground and hand to hand the ragged rebels have 
withstood and beaten the British grenadiers! 

The day is now spent; the American position can 
neither be turned nor taken; the British left is threat- 
ened, and the whole army cooped up on the right — 
there is nothing for Clinton to do but to retire. Already 
his troops have left the woods in front of Stirling — 
the centre has repassed the ravine in front of Carr's 
House — the horsemen have turned their backs — the 
whole army is retreating. Down from the heights come 
the Americans in pursuit, and over the hot fields filled 
with the bodies of the dead. The word goes back to 
Steuben to bring up fresh men, for the enemy are re- 
treating in confusion, and though Lee, then at the rear, 
declares that it cannot be true, the old veteran hastens 
to obey. Before he has arrived the enemy are strongly 
posted on the groiind beyond the ravine ; and it is nearly 
seven o'clock. Washington prepares to resume the 
offensive, but both sides are tired out. 

A DRAWN BATTLE 

And there through the sultry twilight the two armies 
lie watching each other, panting and exhausted, with 



BATTLE OF 3I0N MOUTH 89 

only the defile between them. The fields are strewn 
with coats, cartouch-boxes, and guns, the ground torn 
up with shot, the trees shattered with the marks of 
cannon-balls. The Americans hold the field of battle, 
but the British present a sullen and threatening front. 
The shadows creep out of the west — the steam rises 
from the hollows — the sun, like a ball of fire, has dis- 
appeared — the sultry twilight has faded — the hot night 
has begun. The dead lie where they fell, the wounded 
groan and gasp for air — in the woods, by the hedge-row, 
in the marsh, on the trodden field — and the tired living 
sink on their arms to sleep. Poor's sentinels, close 
to the enemy, are watching their right — Woodford's 
guarding their left. Beneath a tall tree Washington 
and Lafayette, wrapped in a single cloak, lie down 
to rest. A solemn silence has followed the tumult of 
the day, and so the long hours of the night pass by. 

With the first streak of dawn the men are under arms. 
Poor pushes his l^rigade across the ravine, Woodford 
advances on the left, and the whole army awaits the 
signal for attack. But still no sound comes from the 
British camp. And look, for the sun is up, the fields 
in front are deserted; the cannon that frowned across 
the ravine at nightfall have disappeared; the red-coats 
have vanished in the night. Four of their officers and 
forty men He wounded in their empty camp. In the 
darkness, in the shadows of the night, the Royal army 
has stolen away. The Battle of Monmouth has been 
fought and won! 



90 BATTLE OF iMOSMOVTII 

CLINTON STEALS AWAY IN THE DARKNESS 

During the midnight hours Chnton has withdrawn in 
stealth to join his baggage in the hiUs of Middletown. 
Without cavalry, pursuit is useless. The British reach 
Sandy Hook on the 30th, and Washington advances to 
Brunswick and White Plains. 

With the events that followed I have not to do. We 
all know the result: how the allied attack on Rhode 
Island was a failure, and how the British remained quiet 

Sir Henry Clinton, with the royal army, had arrived at the 
Highlands of Navesink, in the neighborhood of Sandy Hook, on 
the 30th of June. He had lost many men by desertion, Hessians 
especially, during his march through the Jerseys, which, with his 
losses by killed, wounded, and captured, had diminished his 
army more than two thousand men. 

General Washington marched from Monmouth to Brunswick, 
where he rested his troops; thence to Paramus and Haverstraw 
Bay on the Hudson, and finally re-established his headquarters at 
White Plains on the 22d of July. 

The Battle of Rhode Island occurred August 29, 1778. New- 
port, R. I., had been seized and garrisoned by the British with 
6000 men under Pigott. Sullivan and Lafayette on land and 
Count D'Estaing on sea concerted an attack. Butt's Hill on 
Rhode Island was seized by Sullivan. D'Estaing was forced to 
meet Howe and the English fleet, but a terrible storm averted 
battle, and D'Estaing retired to Boston to refit. The Americans 
were obliged to evacuate by the arrival of Clinton with 5000 
reinforcements. 

The battle of Monmouth was the last important battle in the 
Northern States. For the remainder of the war the chief seat 
of conflict was in the South. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 91 

in New York until December, when they departed to 
invade the South. 

CONSEQUENCES RESULTING FROM THE BATTLE 

But the excitements of the affair of Monmouth 
ceased not with the battle. The singular conduct of 
General Lee — his disrespectful letters to the Com- 
mander-in-chief — his trial — the confused and conflict- 
ing testimony — his able and ingenious defence (often in- 
consistent and based on after-thought though it was) 
— his conviction and his sentence — gave rise to bitter 
controversy for years to come. Many were convinced 
that he was guilty of greater offences than those with 
which he had been charged; some held him innocent, 

"Washington was directed by a resolution of Congress to 
administer the oath of allegiance to the officers of the army before 
leaving Valley Forge. The oath was administered to several at 
one time, each officer placing his hand upon the Bible. Just 
as the Commander-in-chief began to repeat the oath, General Lee 
withdrew his hand. This movement was repeated, to the aston- 
ishment of all. Washington inquired the cause of his strange 
conduct, when he replied, 'As to King George, I am ready enough 
to absolve myself from all allegiance to him, but J have some 
scruples about the Prince of Wales.' Lee eventually took the 
oath with the rest and subscribed his name." 

Conduct of Lee: "The conduct of Lee throughout the day 
was very strange, and gives a coloring to the conjecture that the 
thorn of envy was still rankling in his bosom, and that he pre- 
ferred seeing the Americans disgraced by a defeat rather than 
Washington honored by a victory. Lafayette, who had watched 
with the eyes of ardent affection the progress and termination of 
the conspiracy against Washington a few months previously as 



92 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

and even deserving of high praise. It is probable that 
he was in some degree innocent, and, at the same time, 
in greater measure guilty. It is clear that Washington's 
order to attack left him full discretion. It is evident 
that an engagement in the plain would have been un- 
wise, and that Lee's opinion of the position near the 
Court-House was a sounder one than Wayne's. It is 
probable that a well-managed retreat, drawing the 
British into the ground they finally occupied, and pro- 
viding for the main army to receive them there, might 
have resulted in a battle disastrous to the enemy; but 
nothing before, or during, or after his retreat suggests 

his proposed successor, was properly suspicious. Soon after his 
application to Lee for permission to attempt to gain the enemy's 
rear, one of Washington's aides arrived for information; and 
Lafayette took the occasion to inform his excellency through the 
aide that his presence upon the ground was of the utmost import- 
ance. He felt convinced that Lee's movements were governed 
either by cowardice or treachery, and he was anxious to have 
Washington controlling the movements of the day." 

"It was evident that after the first vent of his indignation, on 
'seeing Lee making a shameful retreat before the enemy, Washing- 
ton was willing to overlook the act, and forget and forgive Lee's 
harsh words, spoken in anger. Had the latter been actuated by 
the same noble and generous spirit, all would have been well. 
But the rebuke of the Commander-in-chief struck deep into his 
pride, and he could not rest satisfied with the retort he had given 
to his general. On the day after the battle he wrote a letter to 
Washington, in which he demanded an apology for his remarks on 
the battlefield. Washington replied that he conceived his letter 
to be expressed in terms highly impr()])er, and asserted his convic- 
tion that the words which he useil when he met him retreating 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 93 

that any such plan had entered the mind of General 
Lee. He made no plan of action in advance. He com- 
municated none to his brigadier's at any time. He 
withdrew his right in haste when the enemy approached, 
but gave his left no orders. He fell back to Carr's 
House in confusion, which he saw, but did not try to 
check. His directions to those about him were contra- 
dictory; to those at a distance he had none to give. 
His talk with Wikoff showed that he thought to make a 
stand, but knew neither when nor where to do it, and 
from the beginning to the end he sent no word to Wash- 
ington of what was taking place. It was his fault that 



were warranted by the circumstances. He charged Lee with a 
breach of orders and misbehavior before the enemy, in not attack- 
ing them and in making an 'unnecessary, disorderly, and shame- 
ful retreat.' Lee wrote an insulting reply. In a second letter, 
dated June 30th (two days after the battle), Lee demanded a 
court of inquiry immediately, accompanying that demand with 
offensive remarks. Washington immediately sent Colonel Scam- 
mel, the adjutant-general, to put Lee under arrest, on the fol- 
lowing charges: 

"First: Disobedience of orders in not attacking the enemy on 
the 28th of June, agreeably to repeated instructions. 

''Second: Misbehavior before the enemy on the same day by 
making an unnecessary, disorderly, and shameful retreat. 

"Third: Disrespect to the Commander-in-chief, in two letters, 
dated the 1st of July and the 28th of June. 

"The court-martial was convened at Brunswick on the 4th of 
July, consisting of one major-general (Lord Stirling, who was 
president), four brigadiers, and eight colonels. General Lee was 
found guilty on all the charges, and was suspended from the army 
for a term of twelve months." — Spark's Washington. 



94 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

his command acted without a head ; it was his fault that 
the enemy had to be stopped at a disadvantage to get 
time to form the main army even for defence; and if it 
was his plan to draw Clinton into a trap, as he asserted, 
and in the same breath denied, in his defence, he took 
no pains to make that plan successful or avert the dis- 
aster which every moment, under his eyes, threatened 
to be more complete and overwhelming. And it is 
certain that his subsequent conduct cannot be excused. 
His behavior to Congress was undignified and weak ; his 
attacks on Washington ill-natured and contemptible; 
and his death — sudden and speedy as it was — was too 
tardy for his fame. 

The generation that knew Charles Lee was too much 
interested in the events in w^hich he was an actor to 
form an accurate estimate of his character or sit in 
judgment on his life. The century that has intervened 
has cooled forever the passions that stirred the bosoms 
of his friends and enemies. We can judge him with 

His behavior to Congress: The term of suspension had ex- 
pired when a rumor reached him that Congress intended to take 
away his commission. He was then in bodily pain; the intelli- 
gence ruffled his temper beyond all bounds. In his hurry and 
heat, without attempting to ascertain the truth of the report, he 
scrawled the following note to the President of Congress: "Sir, 
I understand that it is in contemplation of Congress, on the prin- 
ciple of economy, to strike me out of their service. Congress 
must know very little of me if they suppose that I would accept 
of their money since the confirmation of the wicked and infamous 
sentence which was passed upon me." This insolent note oc- 
casioned his prompt dismissal from the service. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 95 

calmness and impartiality; for to us he is simply a figure 
in our early history. And we know him better than 
our fathers did. They may have seen that, like Gates, 
he feared the British grenadiers, and could not persuade 
himself that the raw levies of Congress could stand up 
against them. They may have thought that, like others 
besides Gates, he was jealous of Washington, and did not 
wish him victory. They may have suspected that he 
was annoyed that his advice had been overruled, and 
did not wish an attack, made in spite of it, to be success- 
ful. But they did not understand, in the face of many 
signs, that his heart was not in their struggle; and they 
did not know, as we do, that when a prisoner in New 
York, on the 25th of March, 1777, this second in com- 
mand of their armies had written and submitted to the 
British general an elaborate plan for the subjection of 
America. Side by side with that paper, in Lee's un- 
mistakable handwriting, and endorsed by Howe's 
secretary ''Mr. Lee's Plan," the most elaborate defence 
of his conduct here at Monmouth falls broken to the 
ground. His motives may have been humane, his de- 
sire to prevent bloodshed earnest, his wish to reunite the 

"Mr. Lee's Plan": That Lee was a traitor to the cause which 
he pretended to support has been proved beyond question. Some 
years since, George H. Moore, LL.D., of the city of New York, 
secured possession of the letter written by Lee while he was a 
prisoner, and addressed to General Howe. It was penned March 
29, 1777, and the offer of his services to the British commander 
was made in unmistakable terms. That they were not accepted 
was probably because Howe rated them at their true value. 



96 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

mother-country and the colonies sincere; but the act 
was that of a traitor, and on this spot, identified with 
the last scene of his career, it is more charitable than 
just to grant to a name and memory associated with 
such a deed the mercy of oblivion. 

WHY THE BATTLE OF MONMOUTH WAS FAMOUS 

The battle of the 28th of June was famous for many 
things. It was there that Charles Lee ended his career. 
It was there that the last great battle of the war was 
fought — from this to Yorktown the conflicts were on a 
smaller scale. And it was there that the American 
first showed himself a finished soldier. Courage he had 
exhibited enough alread}', but for the task which he had 
undertaken untrained valor was not enough. 

EXAMPLES OF HEROISM 

The audacious sj^irit which led the half-armed farmers 
of Massachusetts to seize the hill beyond Charlestown 
neck, at night, and throw up a rude breastwork within 
half a cannon-shot of a British fleet and army — the 

Name the various things for wliioh the battle of the 28th of 
June was famous. 

Yorktown: A city of Virginia, on the York River, 10 miles 
from its mouth and about 60 miles from Richmond. Yorktown 
is noted for the surrender of liOrd Cornwallis and his army to 
Washington in the year 17S1, which was the virtual close of the 
Revolutionary War. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 97 

headlong daring of Arnold at Quebec and Behmus's 
Heights— the splendid gallantry of Christopher Greene 
behind the intrenchments at Red Bank— the intrepidity 
of Wayne leading his forlorn hope up the heights of 
Stony Point— the rash valor of Ethan Allen in the gates 

Arnold at Quebec: Colonel Benedict Arnold with a crowd of 
half-famished men, who had ascended the Kennebec and then 
struggled through the wilderness, united his force with the army 
of General Montgomery in an assault upon Quebec. In the midst 
of a terrible snowstorm they led their forces in a gallant attack 
but the attempt failed. Montgomery fell at the first fire and 
Arnold was severely wounded in the leg. 

Bemus (Behmus) Heights: A post village of Saratoga Countv, 
New York, on the Hudson, 24 miles north of Albany Here 
were fought the two battles of Stillwater between the forces of 
Gates and Burgoyne, September 19 and October 7, 1777. The 
first is often called the battle of Bemus Heights. 

Christopher Greene, a colonel in the American army was 
born in Warwick, Rhode Island, in 1737. He commanded Fort 
Mercer at Red Bank on the Delaware River, in 1777, and re- 
pulsed a strong body of Hessians who attacked that fort He died 
in May, 17S1. 

Wayne at Stony Point: At this place the British held a fort 
on a rocky promontory on the Hudson River at the King's Ferry 
It was garrisoned by some grenadiers and artillery under the 
command of Lieutenant-colonel Johnson. General Anthony 
Wayne took the fort by storm on the night of July 6, 1779 This 
was one of the most brilliant exploits performed in the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

Ethan Allen (1738-89) a brigadier-general in the Revolu- 
tionary army. In 1775, after the battle of Lexington, he gath- 
ered a company of his ''Green Mountain boys" and marched 



98 BA TTLE OF MONMOUTH 

of Ticonderoga — the reckless bravery of Sergeant Jasper 
on the ramparts of Fort Moultrie, were but examples 
of an almost universal courage. But even this, splendid 
as it was, would not have availed alone through seven 
years of constant and often disastrous fighting. It was 
the calm and reflecting courage of the soldier trained in 
the school of trial — that could fall back without disor- 
der, retreat without panic, endure sufferinr without a 
murmur, and bear defeat with patience. It was the 
long-suffering Valley Forge, bearing its fruit in the vet- 
eran-like courage of Monmouth, that saved Civil 
Liberty for both continents alike. 

WASHINGTON'S SOLDIERLY QUALITIES 

And never were the soldierly qualities of Washington 
displayed more brilliantly than here. '^I never saw 



against the fortresses of Ticonderoga and Crown Point. Land- 
ing with 93 men just before daylight, he surprised the fort. The 
British commander rushed out in his night-clothes and asked: 
''What does this mean?" He was ordered to surrender. "In 
whose name?" he asked. "In the name of the Great Jehovah and 
the Continental Congress," replied Allen, and the fort was sur- 
rendered. 

William Jasper, known in history as Sergeant Jasper, was 
born in South Carohna about 1750. When the American flag was 
shot away in the attack on Fort Mouhrie, June 2S, 177G, he leaped 
outside the walls of the fort , amidst a perfect storm of cannon-shot, 
replaced the flag, and returned to his post without injury. He 
was killed at Savannah in October, 1779. 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 99 

the general to so much advantage," wrote Hamilton 
to Boudinot; ''his coolness and firmness were admir- 
able." " His presence stopped the retreat," said Lafay- 
ette; "his dispositions fixed the victory — his fine ap- 
pearance on horseback, his calm courage, roused to 
animation by the vexations of the morning, gave him 
an air best calculated to arouse enthusiasm." The 
general voice of his countrymen confirmed the judg- 
ment of Hamilton when he wrote: "America owes a 
great deal to General Washington for this day's work 
— a general rout, dismay, and disgrace would have 



Elias Boudinot (1740-1821), of New Jersey, was a delegate 
to Congress most of the time from 1777 to 1784. He was presi- 
dent of Congress in 1782, and as such signed the Treaty of 
Peace with England. He was a member of Congress from 
1789 to 1795; director of the mint from 1795 to 1805; was 
deeply interested in the education of the Indians and in mis- 
sionary enterprises. 

Washington's Revolutionary War Record : Elected Com- 
mander-in-chief of the American army June 15, 1775; took com- 
mand of the army at Cambridge July 2, 1775; was at the evacua- 
tion of Boston March 17, 1776; at the battle of Long Island, 
August 27, 1776; invested by Congress with dictatorial powers 
December 27, 1776; at the battle of Trenton December 26, 1776; 
at the battle of Princeton January 3, 1777; at the battle of 
Brandywine September 11, 1777; at the battle of Germantown 
October 4, 1777; at the battle of Monmouth June 28, 1778; at 
the siege of Yorktown October 19, 1781; made his farewell ad- 
dress to the army November 2, 1783; last meeting with his 
officers December 4, 1783; resigned his commission December 23, 
1783. 



100 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

attended the whole army in any other hands but 
his." 

From this time forward there was no longer question 
who should be Commander-in-chief. One after an- 
other of his enemies disappeared — Lee was suspended 
from command, Conway returned to France, Mifflin 
left the service. Gates was overthrown at Camden. 
It was he alone who had kept the army together at 



Explain what is meant by the following: "his dispositions 
fixed the victory"; "by the vexations of the morning." Show 
America's debt to Washington for this day's work. Justify 
the statement that "a general rout, dismay, and disgrace would 
have attended the whole army in any other hands but his." 
What one great thing did the battle of Monmouth settle? What 
happened to Washington's enemies? Who kept the army to- 
gether at Valley Forge? Who saved the day at Monmouth? 

Thomas Mifflin (1744-1800) had served in the Pennsylvania 
Legislature before he entered the first Continental Congress. In 
the war he was at first aide-de-camp to Washington and then 
quartermaster-general. He covered the retreat of the army in 
the evacuation of Brooklyn in 1776, and soon afterward was 
appointed major-general and a member of the Board of War. 
With Conway and Gates he was associated in the intrigues against 
Washington, and in 1778 he was retired from the office of quarter- 
master-general. He was president of Congress in 1783, member 
of the Federal Convention of 1787, and a signer of the Constitu- 
tion. He was governor of Pennsylvania from 1790 to 1799. 

"With great exertions a new American army was collected in 
North Carolina, but the command of it, unfortunately, was given 
to Gates, and on the 16th of August, 1780, Cornwallis nearly 
destroyed it at Camden. It was, perhaps, the worst defeat ever 
inflicted upon an American army." 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 101 

Valley Forge — it was he alone who had saved the day at 
Monmouth — it is he alone that shall win the liberties of 
this struggling people. Soldier and statesman, for 
five-and-twenty years the central figure in his country's 
history, he shall appear to posterity as he did to Lafay- 
ette that day, w^ho thought, as he watched the splendid 
figure dashing along the forming lines, that never 
before or since had he beheld " so superb a man." The 
affair of Monmouth was in some respects a drawn battle. 
The report which Clinton wrote conveyed the idea that 
he had accomplished all he wished — beaten the provin- 
cials and continued on his way to take advantage of the 
moonlight, although the fact was, that the moon on that 
night was but four days old. Many in England recog- 
nized the truth about the battle, for we find Horace 
Walpole writing shortly afterwards, '^The undisci- 
pHned courtiers speak of it in most dismal terms." 

Sir Henry Clinton, in his official dispatch to Lord George 
Germaine, wrote, ''Having reposed the troops until ten at night 
to avoid excessive heat of the day, I took advantage of the moonlight 
to rejoin General Knyphausen, who had advanced to Nut Swamp, 
near Middletown." This assertion was the cause of much merri- 
ment in America, for it was known that the event took place about 
the time of new moon. In allusion to this circumstance, Trum- 
bull wrote: 

"He forms his camp with great parade 
While evening wraps the world in shade, 
Then still, like some belated spark. 
Steals off, on tiptoe, in the dark; 
Yet writes the King, in boastful tone, 
How grand he marched by light of moon." 



102 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

'' If I guess right, Washington was ill served, and thence, 
and by violent heats, could not effect all his purposes; 
but an army on a march through a hostile country 
that is twice beaten back — which is owned — whose 
men drop down with heat, have no hospitals, and 
were hurrying to a place of security, must have lost 
more than three hundred and eighty men"; and he 
adds later, with a sneer, ''The Ro^^al army has gained 
an escape." But the Americans claimed it with en- 
thusiasm as a victory. 

OPINIONS OF THE BATTLE 

It was true that the enemy had escaped. It was true 
that the fruits belonged rather to Clinton than to Wash- 
ington, for the purpose of the one had failed, and that of 
the other been accomplished. But it was evident to all 
men that the days of the superiority of the British army 
were over. The Continentals had encountered the 
grenadiers in the open field, and under disastrous cir- 
cumstances, and had withstood and even repulsed them. 
After a whole day's fighting it had been the British who 
fell back, and the Americans who kept the field — and 
this time it had been the Rebels who had wished to 
renew the battle, and the Regulars who had refused it. 
The fact that the enemy had escaped made little differ- 
ence to the enthusiastic Americans. He had been 

Justify the statement that Washington was ill served. Name 
obstacles that were placed in Washington's way. Was the battle 
of Monmouth a victory for the Americans? 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 103 

beaten fairly and that was glory enough. The Con- 
gress was in ecstasy — the Whigs jubilant. Wrote 
Washington himself, ''From an unfortunate and bad 
beginning it turned out a glorious and happy day." 
''The behavior of the officers and men in general was 
such as could not easily be surpassed. Our troops, after 
the first impulse from mismanagement, behaved with 
more spirit and moved with greater order than the 



What object had been accomplished by Washington? In 
what way did the Continental soldiers show superiority over the 
British regulars? Who wished to renew the battle? What 
effect did tiiis battle have upon Congress? How did it affect the 
Whigs? How did Washington view the results of the battle? 
What comment did he have to make upon the behavior of the 
officers and men? 

There are other features of this battle that claim attention. 
It was a fight between the main armies of the belligerent powers, 
under the respective Commanders-in-chief supported by the 
leading officers on either side. Besides Sir Henry Clinton, there 
were with the British Lord Cornwallis, Knyphausen, Leslie, 
Grant, and Sir William Erskine; and with Washington were 
Lafayette, Greene, Lord Stirling, Wayne, Steuben, Scott, and our 
own Dickinson, Maxwell, Morgan, and Forman. There were also 
many young men of inferior rank, who subsequently attained to 
high position, among them were Colonels Hamilton, Burr, Ogden, 
and Frelinghuysen. James Monroe, the fifth President of the 
United States, was here on Lord Stirling's staff with the rank of 
major. And there was also here John Marshall, afterward the 
Chief Justice of the United States, the most distinguished jurist 
this country has produced. He was then a captain in the 
Eleventh Virginia Regiment in the Continental line, and was in 
the advance under Wayne. 



104 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

British troops," were the words of Hamilton. Said 
General William Irvine, ''It was a most glorious day 
for the American arms." ''Indeed," wrote Knox, "it 
is very splendid. The capital army of Britain defeated 
and obliged to retreat before the Americans, whom they 
despised so much." "The effects of the battle will be 
great and lasting. It will convince the enemy that 
nothing but a good constitution is wanting to render our 
army equal to any in the world." As for Wayne, whose 
"good conduct and bravery," in the words of Washing- 
ton, "deserve particular commendation," he could not 
contain himself. "Tell those Philadelphia ladies," he 
wrote to a friend, "who attended Howe's assemblies and 
levees, that the heavenly sweet, pretty red-coats, the 
accomplished gentlemen of the guards and grenadiers 
have been humbled on the plains of Monmouth. The 
Knights of the Blended Roses and of the Burning 



What comment did Hamilton make upon the American sol- 
diers? Who was General Irvine? Name the comments of Knox. 
Enumerate the military services of General Knox. In what par- 
ticulars did the good conduct and bravery of Wayne deserve par- 
ticular commendation? What services were rendered by the vir- 
tuous daughters of America to the cause of liberty? 

Knichts of the Blended Roses: A feature of the programme 
of the Mischianza given in honor of General Howe on the eve of 
his departure for England. The Knights of the Blended Roses pro- 
claimed that the ladies of the Blended Roses excelled in wit, beauty, 
and every accomplishment those of the whole world; and if any 
knight or knights were so hardy as to deny it, they were ready to 
enter the lists with them and maintain their assertions by deeds 



BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 105 

Mount have resigned their laurels to rebel officers, who 
will lay them at the feet of those virtuous daughters of 
America, who cheerfully gave up ease and affluence in a 
city for liberty and peace of mind in a cottage." 

TIME AND ITS CHANGES 

Such, my countrymen, is the history of this famous 
fight. The years that have gone by have left no trace 
of it upon your soil. The fields are changed, the morass 
has become a pleasant meadow, the woods have fallen, 
the ancient Parsonage has gone. And they who strug- 
gled here, grenadier and Continental, veteran in scarlet, 
and yeoman in rags, have all passed away forever; they 
who fought against us and they who fought to make us 
free, old and young alike, great man and humble, he 
whose fitting sepulchre is his country's heart and they 
who, in unmarked graves in yonder field, have long since 
mouldered into dust — the nameless dead, who died for 
you and me. Father, son, and grandchild, they have 

of arms. The Knights of the Burning Mountain presented 
themselves to disprove by deeds the vain-glorious assertions of 
the Knights of the Blended Roses. During the fourth encounter 
the marshal of the field rushed in, and declared that the ladies of 
the Blended Roses and the Burning Mountain were perfectly satis- 
fied with the proofs of love and fidelity and commanded them to 
desist from further encounter. 

In your own language write a sketch of this famous fight. 

What is meant by the expression, "he whose fitting sepulchre 
is his country's heart"? Where is Washington buried? 



106 BATTLE OF MONMOUTH 

descended to the grave, and of all that knew and loved 
them in their prime, not one survives. The peaceful 
plough passing through your fields may uncover rusted 
ball, or broken bayonet, or mouldering skull, or crumb- 
ling skeleton. But the wild fury of the fight has gone; 
the struggling host has vanished; the loud-mouthed can- 
non are forever dumb. Another sound is rising in the 
land. It comes from town and hamlet, from marts 
of commerce and from haunts of trade, from workshop 
and from forge, from field and mine, from forest, hill, 
and stream. It tells of joy and gladness, of content 
and peace, of well-stored granaries and happy homes. 
It tells of a people virtuous and free, a government 
rooted in the hearts of men. It is a nation's prayer, a 
people's cry, a song of Hope and Prophecy. 

And from these hills to-day a voice goes forth to meet 
it. Americans, it seems to say, as with your fathers 
shall it be with you. Faith, Courage, Fortitude, Virtue, 
and Love of Country can win you battles now as well 
as then. Defeat may still lead the way to Victory and 
Suffering to Happiness. And when the night cometh 
and the shadows fall, remember that the sun that went 
down at Valley Forge was the same that arose above 
the Heights of Freehold. 

What is meant by "well-stored granaries"? a "government 
rooted in the hearts of men"? "a voice goes forth to meet it"? 
What elements are needed to win future victories? In what 
way may defeat lead to victory? suffering to happiness? 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 



I. HENRY ARMITT BROWN 

Henry Armitt Brown's oration at Valley Forge, June 19, 
1878, demonstrates the fact that as an orator he was the peer of 
Webster, Philips, Patrick Henry, and Edward Everett; and, 
like the great French orators, his speech was finished, classic, 
evenly sustained, and within an elegance of style. He had four 
qualities of an orator — a masterful will, personal magnetism, a 
flexible and musical voice, and an exquisitely finished elocution. 
At a little over thirty years of age he held, as it were, entranced 
thousands by his great reasoning and eloquence. Looking 
around among the orators of the day, we see but a few who have 
not gained a good ripe age before they attained that great sub- 
limity of mind and character which seemed bound up in him. 

"The young men of our country should make his life a study; 
no more perfect model can be found, for in him they see what a 
young man has done and what other young men can do. His 
example should serve to stimulate the young and noble-minded to 
exalted aims. 

"The young men in our American colleges, we think, ever look 
forward to becoming public men, the recognized servants of the 
republic; and they should act upon the principle that, from the 
very talents intrusted to them, they are expected to become the 
strong stays and helpers of the commonwealth. By so doing they 
will follow in his footsteps whose life is imperfectly set forth in 
these pages, and who fell on the ' high places of the field ' to make 
room for them to follow." 

107 



108 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

His Childhood and Early Life 

Henry Armitt Brown was born in the city of Philadelphia, 
December 1 , 1S44. His father was a representative business man ; 
his mother was Charlotte Augusta Hoppin, from whom he in- 
herited his literary tastes. 

"Harry was a sweet tempered child, delicately strung and 
extremely sensitive to the touch and sight of harsh things, as if 
unfit to be stretched on this rough world, imaginative, curious 
in his questionings, sympathetic and affectionate, but stubborn 
of will, and apt to sec things in a very independent and ludicrously 
odd light." 

"When an older boy, his favorite pastime was studying the 
histories of great battles, especially those of Napoleon, and in 
arranging and moving companies of tin soldiers and parks of 
artillery according to the changing plans of the battles. This 
play was carried on on so large a scale as to attract the attention of 
the neighbors and of older people to the extent of the combina- 
tions. One whole portion of the garden thus employed would 
become the scene of a wide and hurrying conflict, platoons of 
soldiers shifting across the field, forts blowing up, dwellings in 
flames, rivers crossed, and discharge of artillery from the flying 
batteries." 

He became so absorbed in his military plans that until he was 
fourteen years of age his one great, ambition was to become a great 
captain. He was so bent upon a military career that he imj^or- 
tuned his father time and time again to be permitted to go to 
West Point Military Academy, but was each time refused. As 
his biographer has said, "This throws some light upon his 
character, which, as it sometimes happens, beneath an almost 
feminine delicacy of organization, hid a nature of sinewy am- 
bition fitted to leadership." He was prepared for college at 
the Burlington Academy and at Dr. Lyons' School in Haver- 
ford, Pennsylvania. 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 109 



His College Life 

He entered Yale College in 1861, and it was not long before he 
cast himself into the current of student life with all his youthful 
enthusiasm. Here he found a congenial field for his varied talents, 
identifying himself with every social and literary effort. In 
resolutions drafted by class committees; in speeches delivered at 
class suppers; in Delta Kappa, Alpha Sigma Phi, and Psi Upsilon 
lyrics; in debates and war songs of the Brothers of Unity; in the 
organization and carrying out of the Thanksgiving jubilees of 
sophomore, junior, and senior years, his pen and voice were fore- 
most. He was soon recognized as a ready and acceptable speaker 
and was in constant demand. During his college career he had 
not only developed a talent for acting, but the college songs from 
his pen are sufficient evidence of his talent in this line. Honors 
were being constantly heaped upon him, but, it must be remem- 
bered, that they were won by the sheer force of his intellect. He 
read much, but not along any definite lines. He was passion- 
ately fond of the classics, especially the Latin poets. His inde- 
pendent reading included history, political economy, and phil- 
osophy. 

Harry Brown was chosen to be class-poet, a deserved tribute 
to his popularity and ability. "His class-mates were satisfied 
that a great poet had spoken, and what more could be asked?" 
His college life was irreproachable and his sense of honor exquisite. 
It was at Yale that he acquired the power to think, to reason, to 
write, and to speak — four great acquisitions for any man. What 
college education could do more? 

Settling Down to Work 

Soon after graduation he entered Columbia Law School in New 
York City, and in the following July, 1866, he sailed for the 
Continent, where he spent sixteen months visiting all the countries 
of Europe, with the exception of Russia, Sweden, Norway, and 
Spain, LTpon his return from Europe he resumed his study of 



110 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

law in the office of Daniel Dougherty, Esq., of Philadelphia, and 
was admitted to the bar as an attorney December 18, 1869. He 
devoted himself faithfully to his legal business, but in April, 
1870, he sailed once more for Europe. Upon his return home he 
settled down to his professional studies. " He shook off the slight 
dilettantism which was the mingled product of a fondness for 
society and the cherishing, in a time of life betwixt the ideal and 
the actual, of something of a Hamlet-like spirit of thoughtful 
inaction. He was a dreamer, though an earnest one. As in 
college, while ever pondering it, he had not found his work. He 
had not heard the bugle-call. The associations of early years 
clung about him, and he was more of a loiterer in those green 
imaginative meads than a laborer in the real field. He had begun 
to appreciate the sensible words of another, ' Of all the work that 
produces results, nine-tenths must be drudgery.'" 

Mr. Brown became an active member of the Philadelphia 
Shakespeare Society, and his friends claim that the influence of 
his study of Shakespeare is perceptible in its power upon his 
oratory, giving it elegant finish, condensation, and tactical dex- 
terity in dealing with mind. 

A Public Discovery 

On the 19th of December, 1872, a complimentary dinner was 
given to the Hon. Ex-Chief Justice Thompson. The best legal 
talent of the city was present. The eighth and last toast of the 
evening was "The Juniors of the Bar." This toast was assigned 
to Henry Armitt Brown. This announcement caused some sur- 
prise, due to the fact that he was so recent a member of the bar. 
But these feelings were soon dispelled as his exquisitely finished 
elocution fell upon the ear. "The Public Ledger" characterized 
the effort as "one of the marked orations of the evening." And 
so it was discovered that Harry Brown could speak. From now 
on his oratorical career was onward and upward. Ever and 
anon he was called to the lecture field and the political stump. 
He had every qualification for the public lecture field, and would 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 111 

have rivalled the most shining names upon the public platform 
if he had followed out this career. 

In the meantime h(^ was married, December 7, 1871, to Miss 
Josephine Lea, of Philadeli)hia — a union of rare happiness and 
congeniality of mind. 

A new field presented itself to his claims and oratorical powers. 
It was the Centennial Epoch of memoralizing the great events of 
the country's history. Harry Brown had not yet won his great- 
est triumph. He was invited to deliver the oration in Carpenter's 
Hall, Philadelphia, on the one hundredth anniversary of the 
meeting of Congress of 1774. Of this address the ''Philadelphia 
Press" said, "As the exercises continued, and the oration of the 
day was being delivered, the whole aspect of the assembly changed. 
Those there seated were no longer men of business, but sons of 
liberty, who had suddenly realized the grandeur of their birth- 
right. The thrilling oration fanned into a white-heat the long- 
smothered embers of patriotism, until the air seemed heavy with 
the magnetic influence of deep emotion and mental excitement. 
The scene was one never to be forgotten. Old men whose years 
overlapped the nineties stood erect with a renewed youth, and 
waved their hats in the air, and the young men, to whom the word 
liberty had long been so familiar as to have become an empty 
sound, seemed suddenly to realize the deep significance of the 
term, and to long for some way of proving their devotion to a 
government which had cost such precious blood to gain." 

His next oratorical triumph was won at the old Quaker town 
of Burlington, New Jersey, December 6, 1877, on the occasion of 
its two hundredth anniversary of its formation. The style of this 
oration, while finished, was not highly rhetorical. It was in 
quaint good taste, as befitting the peaceful old Quaker town about 
which its loving memories linger. 

Near the beginning of the last year of his life Mr. Brown had 
been asked to deliver an oration on the anniversary of the evacu- 
ation of Valley Forge. The delivery of this oration on June 19, 
1878, was the last and most brilliant of Mr. Brown's public 
efforts. From this celebration Mr. Brown went home, it might be 



112 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

literally said, to die. Low in strength and using up all his physical 
energy he had in speaking, he contracted a fever at or about the 
time of the celebration. For eight weeks there was a succession 
of hopes and fears. He died August 21, 1878, at the age of 
thirty-three years. 

As AN Orator 

"Henry Armitt Brown, though a man of uncommonly varied 
gifts, was a born orator." 

"With the exception of Patrick Henry, Henry Clay, and 
Daniel Webster, no speaker in the land ever had moments of com- 
pleter triumphs than he over the mind and feelings of his hearers." 

"He was not unlike Edmund Burke, ever espousing the cause 
of justice, and had he lived he would have ranked with that 
eminent essayist and statesman." 

His Methods 

"He always read in advance of his writing, and would search 
indefatigably in any direction for matter bearing upon the sub- 
ject. He went to first causes. He spared himself no pains. 
The result was something of rare and permanent value. He liked 
to read what he had collected to his wife or to a friend, and their 
interest would stimulate him, and, while talking it over, his mind 
would become thoroughly aroused. The committing to memory 
never seemed to give him the least uneasiness, and one day usually 
sufficed for that, no matter how much matter there was. He thus 
filled his mind with the subject, and spoke, though from memory, 
with the inspiration of the theme." 

His Style 

"Not in a massive style, like Bright's oratory, nor in cumula- 
tive epithet, like Sumner's, nor in ej)igrammatic brilliancy, like 
Beaconfield's, nor in broad philosophic discussion, like Gladstone's, 
nor in the magnificent marshalling of fact and phrase, like Ma- 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 113 

caulay's, nor in the coarse, passionate vigor, like O'Connell's. 
He did not have all forces combined — who does? His speech was 
more like that of the great French orators, finished and classic, 
without display of violence or undisciplined imagination. He had 
an elegance of style not incompatible with the highest vigor. 
He won by a forceful but steady pressure." 

As A Man among Men 

"Young, gifted, vigorous, above all, pure, such was Henry 
Armitt Brown." 

"Whatever he undertook he did to some purpose. As a poli- 
tician, he was of the highest stamp ; as an orator, he had already 
ranked among the greatest; as a writer, he was forceful, graceful, 
and scholarly; as a private gentleman, he was modest and unas- 
suming, courteous and chivalric— ever forgetful of self and 
thoughtful of others." 

"Though he labored in different fields, like Burns and Byron, 
his young life ended ere it had scarcely begun, but, to his per- 
petual glory be it said, the sun of his life set without a cloud 
upon it." 

"Politics did not lower in him the standard of high morality 
and honor. His ambition was founded upon his patriotism. 
Nothing could have tempted his integrity, and no partisanship 
could have made him subservient to mean or narrow purposes. 
How safe would be the Republic and how glorious its destiny, 
were all its sons like him." 

II. THE BATTLE OF MONMOUTH MONUMENT* 

"The monument which has just been unveiled in the presence . 
of this vast assembly has been erected to commemorate the heroic 
deeds of our forefathers who fought at Monmouth on the 28th of 
June, 1778. 

* Selections from an address by Ex-Governor Joel Parker at 
the unveiling of the Monmouth Battle Monument, Nov. 13, 1884. 



114 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

"More than a hundred years have passed since the American 
troops, under Washington, met on these fields, in deadly conflict, 
the flower of the British army. But the descendants of the men 
who fought for liberty here have never ceased to feel an honorable 
pride in their achievements on that day. The thrilling incidents 
connected with the battle, rehearsed at the firesitle by father to 
son, have come down to the present generation, keeping alive 
the spirit of patriotism until the opportune time arrived to place 
on the spot where the first gun was fired on that quiet Sabbath 
morning in June, a monument worthy of the event. 

"The war between Great Britain and France, which closed in 
1764, was chiefly waged upon American soil. The colonists 
had borne the brunt of hostihties. Thirty thousand of their best 
men had been slain or died in the service, and a-public debt of ten 
million dollars had been contracted by the colonies. Notwith- 
standing this, England determined to tax America to aid her in 
paying the debt she had incurred in the prosecution of a war under- 
taken by her to extend her possessions and enhance her own glory. 
This the colonists resisted. They protested against taxation 
unless they were given a voice in Parliament. No taxation with- 
out representation was their insistment, but their protests were 
in vain. In 1765 the Stamp Act was passed. Then followed, in 
quick succession, writs of assistance and the billeting of troops on 
the people. Duties were laid on various articles in common use. 
In less than four years no less than twenty-nine acts of arbit rary 
nature, which Burke termed 'an infinite variety of jxaper chains,' 
directed against the colonies and seriously affecting them, were 
passed by Parliament. Each act of oppression produced renewed 
protests and resistance. The stamps were destroyed and the 
stamp oflficers compelled to resign. The people refusetl to use t he 
articles on which duties had been laid by Great Britain to fill her 
empty coffers. Cargoes of tea, shipped to Boston, were thrown 
into the harbor, and Jerseymen made a bonfire of the cargo landed 
from the brig Greyhound on the banks of the Cohansey. Then 
came the closing of the port of lioston, and th(^ enforcement of 
martial law in that city. Other colonies sympathized with Mas- 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 115 

sachusetts, and sent her people provisions. Then it was that the 
inhabitants of Monmouth County sent to the sufferers in Boston 
twelve hundred bushels of rye and fifty barrels of rye meal, with 
a letter, exhorting them to stand firm and not recede while the 
blood of freedom ran in their veins. 

"Lexington and Bunker Hill soon followed, and the American 
Revolution had commenced. The thirteen sparsely populated 
and feeble colonics, not yet recovered from the exhausting effects 
of the French War but recently closed, found themselves in armed 
hostility to the mother country, then the most powerful nation on 
the globe. The war progressed without decided result through 
the campaigns of 1776 and 1777. During the year last named 
the Americans had been successful at Saratoga, but had been 
worsted at Germantown and Brandy wine; and at the close of 
that year the American army went into winter quarters at Valley 
Forge under the most discouraging circumstances, while the 
enemy, under Sir William Howe, confident of ultimate success, 
occupied the city of Philadelphia. 

"No tongue can describe the privations and sufferings of the 
men at Valley Forge during that intensely cold and inclement 
winter. Both officers and soldiers were in huts, on straw, with- 
out blankets, and almost without clothing. Whole regiments 
were barefoot. The rounds of the sentries and the route of 
foraging parties were marked by the blood upon the snow and 
frozen earth. For days together there was no meat, and often 
no bread. The families of the men were clamoring for food, and 
beseeching them to come home to provide for wife and children; 
and yet there was no mutiny, no desertion, and but little murmur- 
ing, for the soldiers loved their country, and loved Washington, 
and knew that he shared with them their misfortunes in a sym- 
pathetic spirit and was doing all in his power to relieve them. 
These were the troops who soon after fought at Monmouth. No 
power on earth could ovecome such men when properly officered 
and directed. 

"It requires stout hearts to stand unmoved in the forefront 
of battle when flying shot and shell deal almost certain death; but 



116 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

the men, who, at Valley Forge, endured for months such terrible 
privations, exhibited greater evidence of fortitude and devotion 
to country than they did in any or in all the battles in which they 
were engaged. Valley Forge was the school of discipline for 
Monmouth, and thus the events that occurred there during that 
dreary winter, which was the crucial period of the American cause, 
are so connected with our theme as to deserve special notice. 

"To add to the difficulties and dangers that at that time 
threatened America in her struggle for freedom, a conspiracy to 
undermine the confidence of the people and of the troops in 
Washington, with the ultimate object of superseding him in the 
command of the American forces, was discovered. It was known 
by the name of the Conway Cabal, because General Conway, a 
foreign officer, was its chief promoter. In the army this conspir- 
acy was confined to a few officers, but, through the secret intrigues 
and machinations of the cabal, dissatisfaction had spread to some 
of the local legislatures, and even to some members of Congress. 
An act was passed by Congress creating a Board of War, the 
object of which, although concealed, was to cripple Washington 
in the conduct of the war, so as to prevent his success, and thus 
produce greater dissatisfaction. The time was considered favor- 
able by the conspirators. It was hoped by them that the army 
would ascribe its sad condition at Valley Forge to the inefficiency 
of the commander; but they found, when the intrigues of the cabal 
were exposed, that the troops cried out with one accord : ' No 
army without Washington! Long live Washington!' and the 
conspirators were compelled to retire from the army in disgrace. 

"On the 27th day of February, 1778, there arrived at Valley 
Forge an officer to whom, next to Washington, America is in- 
debted for the success of her arms at Monmouth. Baron Steuben, 
a Prussian by birth, was a thoroughly educated soldier and of 
great experience. He had been Adjutant-general on the king's 
staff. When ho resigned that position his services were sought by 
other European powers, through inducements, promising fame and 
fortune; but, declining all propositions, he came to America and 
joined the army as a volunteer, without pay, unless independence 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 117 

was secured. Steuben was a believer in the efficiency produced 
by military discipline. His long and varied experience had taught 
him that men could fight well behind fortifications, but could 
not without discipline stand before an enemy in the open field. 
Appointed inspector of the army, with the rank of Major-general, 
he commenced schools of instruction, and faithfully continued 
them throughout the winter and spring, and when the army 
started for Monmouth every regiment was able, as subsequent 
events proved, to form in line of battle and execute the most diffi- 
cult movements in the open field, under fire. 

''In the early spring another officer of high rank joined the 
army at Valley Forge. He had been a prisoner of war since 
December, 1776, and at the time of his exchange was the senior 
Major-general, ranking next to the Commander-in-chief. As this 
officer was destined to play an important part in the battle which 
was soon to follow, a brief sketch of him is proper in this con- 
nection. Charles Lee was not connected with the Lee family of 
Virginia. He was an Englishman by birth and for many years 
served in the British army, attaining the rank of Lieutenant- 
colonel in the Forty-fourth Regiment of foot. He was with that 
regiment in the French and Indian War, and was at Fort Duquesne 
at Braddock's defeat. He afterward served in Portugal, against 
the Spaniards. Subsequently he was a Major-general in the 
Polish army. He came to this country a second time about the 
commencement of the Revolution and soon received from Congress 
a Major-general's commission. Lee was of a petulant disposi- 
tion, insubordinate, ambitious, and vain. From the first he 
aspired to the chief command of the American forces. In short, 
Charles Lee was a military adventurer, a soldier of fortune, 
thoroughly versed in the profession of arms, but devoid of prin- 
ciple, and ready to fight without regard to the cause he espoused. 
In the fall of 1776, when Washington was marching across New 
Jersey toward the Delaware, pursued by a superior force of the 
enemy, Lee, with three thousand men, remained for a long time 
on the New York side of the Hudson, refusing to obey repeated 
orders from Washington to join him; and when at last he did 



118 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

move, he loitered in northern New Jersey until he managed to 
have himself captured by a company of British dragoons, at a 
farmhouse near Baskinridge, more than three miles from his 
camp. As a prisoner he had in New York City the largest liberty 
and possessed peculiar facilities to obtain information concern- 
ing American affairs, knowing of, and, as was afterward proved, 
sympathizing with, the Conway Cabal. In 1857 a document, in 
the handwriting of Charles Lee, dated IVIarch 29, 1777 (while he 
was a prisoner), was discovered, in which he submitted to the 
military authorities of Great Britain a plan to conquer America. 
In May, 1778, after he had been exchanged and had reached 
Valley Forge, in consequence of the exposure of the then recent 
conspiracy. Congress instructed Washington to administer the 
oath of allegiance to all the officers. When Lee was about to take 
the oath he suddenly withdrew his hand from the Bible. On 
being asked for an explanation, he said that as to King George 
he was ready to absolve himself from all allegiance, but he had 
some scruples about the Prince of Wales. Although he after- 
ward kissed the book, the remark excited the contempt of all 
present. The character and previous conduct of General Lee 
have been given at some length, because much that took place 
at Monmouth is thus explained. There is no doubt that Wash- 
ington and other officers suspected his fidelity, but they did not 
have all the evidence we now possess. 

"Another event occurred in the winter of 1777-78 which so 
controlled the movements of the armies of the belligerent powers 
in the next campaign as to here demand notice. On the 6th 
of February, 1778, a treaty of amity and armed alliance with 
France was concluded. The French Government at once began 
warlike preparations to send ships of war and troops to America. 
The news of t he French alliance reached the camp at Valley Forge 
early in May, and was received with great rejoicing. The whole 
army was assembled, the treaty read, and jirayer and thanksgiving 
offered in presence of the troops. Cheers were given for France, 
for the Republic of America, and for Washington. No American 
can forget how much we owe to France for aid in that emergency. 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 119 

Had it not been for that alliance in the hour of our deepfest gloom, 
it is doubtful if independence would have been secured. A fleet 
of twelve ships of the line of immense size and weight of guns, to- 
gether with four large frigates, soon sailed from France for the 
capes of the Delaware. As soon as intelligence of the fitting out 
of this powerful fleet was received in London, the evacuation of 
the city of Philadelphia by the British was determined upon. 
It became a military necessity. There were no transports to 
remove the troops to New York by water, and a march across the 
Jerseys was inevitable. Admiral Howe, who commanded the 
British fleet in the Delaware, weighed anchor and sailed for Sandy 
Hook. Ten days after he left, the French fleet, which had J)een 
detained by adverse winds and tempestuous weather, entered the 
mouth of the Delaware Bay. 

"On the evening of the 17th of June a part of the army, with 
the baggage train, crossed the Delaware to Cooper's Point, and 
early the next morning the remainder of the troops crossed to 
Gloucester, On the 27th of June the whole British army en- 
camped for the night in a strong position in and around the little 
village then called Monmouth Court-House. 



"The consequences resulting from the battle were most im- 
portant. It strengthened and sealed the French Alliance. It 
established Washington and the cause of America securely in the 
hearts of all the people. It also proved that the American sol- 
diers, when disciplined, could stand before any troops on earth, 
in the open field or elsewhere. The battle of Monmouth is 
peculiarly of national importance. Here were troops from each 
of the Old Thirteen. The North and the South stood on the field 
of Monmouth, shoulder to shoulder, for the achievement of victory 
and the establishment of independence. Who can doubt that 
the battles of the Revolution had a powerful influence over the 
combatants in the late Civil War in their hours of reflection. 
The story of those battles, in which their ancestors had together 



120 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

participated, had not onlj^ been recorded on the historic page, but 
had come down to them through tradition. They were brethren 
of the same common ancestry, whose forefathers had unitedly 
established our freedom and cemented the Union with blood. 
They had read and heard of Bunker Hill, of Saratoga, of Guilford 
Court-House, of King's Mountain, of Cowpens, of Bennington, 
Trenton, Princeton, Yorktown, and of Monmouth, and when not 
engaged in active hostilities their hearts warmed toward each 
other. How else can we account for the fact that when oppor- 
tunity offered the soldiers of the Union and Confederate armies 
were found heartily fraternizing, and when the war closed met 
each other wuth open arms. Who believes that if this govern- 
ment had been established without first gaining our independence 
through the battles of the Revolution, by the united efforts of our 
forefathers, that the Union would have been restored after the 
Civil War, except ii - name — held together by the power of bayonets. 
In his first inaugural address President Lincoln, in alluding to the 
fraternal feelings produced by the knowledge that our forefathers 
fought in the American Revolution in and for a common cause, 
expressed the idea in one of the most beautiful and touching 
sentences in the language, when he said: 'The mystic chords of 
memory, stretching from every battle-field and patriot grave to 
every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will 
yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely 
they will be, by the better angels of our nature.' " 

III. THE OCCASION— THE MONMOUTH CENTENNIAL 
CELEBRATION 

"The Battle of Monmouth" oration by that gifted young ora- 
tor, Henry Armitt Brown, was prei)ared for th(^ ceremonies at the 
laying of the cornerstone of the "Monmouth Battle Monument" 
on the 28th of June, 1878, but was never delivered because 
in the providence of God the hand of death was laid upon him. 
In consequence of the extreme heat he became very ill soon after 
he returned home from Valley Forge where he had delivered that 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 121 

remarkable oration at the centennial of the departure of the army 
of the Revolution from winter-quarters at that place. After 
one day's rest, he commenced writing the Monmouth address and 
finished it in bed on the 28th of June. He had been taken with 
typhoid fever from which he never rallied. After fifty-eight days 
of steady fight between natural strength and science and the 
fever, he died the 21st of August, 1878. 

On November 13th, 1884, the Monmouth Battle Monument 
was formally dedicated with impressive ceremonies. "This 
beautiful granite shaft — beautiful in its artistic design — has been 
erected to perpetuate the brave deeds of the sturdy patriots en- 
gaged in battle on that hot Sabbath day. The men of that age 
had no time to build monuments; it was left for us, their descend- 
ants, to commemorate their glorious deeds. We but follow the 
custom of all civilized nations in rearing monuments to the im- 
mortal dead. No memorial shaft in Greece or Egypt, no tri- 
umphal arch in Rome recalls more glorious deeds or more brave 
and valiant men than this granite column. It will ever be associ- 
ated with the struggle for liberty, the success of which gave birth 
to this mighty nation; great not only in its millions of people, 
but in its grand achievements, and greatest of all in demonstrating 
that millions of men can govern themselves without a kingly 
ruler." 

Let us indulge the hope that when century after century shall 
have passed away, this monument shall continue to stand on the 
battle-field of Monmouth, with its shaft pointing toward heaven, 
crowned with "Columbia Triumphant," its base portraying the 
heroic deeds of those who fought there and helped to achieve our 
national independence — the whole teaching future generations 
the cost of liberty and the value of our institutions. 

SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS 

1. What is an oration? 

2. Name the parts of an oration and the purposes of each. 

3. Name five American orators in the order of their standing. 



122 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 

4. Name the soldiers at the battle of Monmouth who were 
destined to become presidents of the United States. 

5. Which soldier at Monmouth was destined to be the most 
illustrious judge of the Supreme Court of the United States? 

6. Which soldier at Monmouth was destined to announce a 
doctrine that has kept the American • continent free from the 
touch of European politics; to debase his talents and afterward 
to be tried for treason? 

7. Why was France interested in the American struggle? 

8. Name three consequences resulting from the battle of 
Monmouth. 

9. Name five prominent British generals who were engaged 
in this battle; ten American generals. 

10. Who was Molly Pitcher? 

11. In what sense was Valley Forge a "school of discipline" 
for the battle of Momnouth? 

12. Describe the sufferings of the soldiers at Valley Forge. 

13. What relation did the French and Indian War have to the 
American Revolul ion? 

14. Show that New Jersey was the 'Svar-path of the Revolu- 
tion." 

15. Show the effects of the French Alliance. 

16. Which soldiers at Monmouth were destined to become 
governors of the State of New Jersey? 

17. To whom, next to Washington, is America indebted 
for the success of her arms at Monmouth? Write a sketch of 
his life. 

18. Show how the unfortunate and bad beginning at Mon- 
mouth was turned into a glorious victory. 

19. Why do Trenton, Princeton, Monmouth, Morristown, 
Red Bank, and Springfield awaken patriotic recollections? 

20. What noted foreigners joined the Continental army and 
took part in the battle of Monmouth? 

21. What made the British abandon Philadelphia in 1778? 

22. Contrast the American and British armies during the 
winter of 1777-78. 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 123 

23. In what sense had 'Thiladelphia taken Sir William 
Howe"? 

24. Show how Washington saved the army at Monmouth. 

25. In what way did the "excitement of the affair at Mon- 
mouth cease not with the battle"? 

26. In what way were the soldierly qualities of Washington 
displayed in this battle? 

27. Why did the Americans claim this battle as a decisive 
victory? 

28. What did Mr. Brown mean when he said, "Another sound 
is rising in the land"? 



.VIAY a 1918 



